Remembrace
by IdiotWithaBoxandaScrewdriver
Summary: Memory lost, Hao begins a new life with a new family to love him. But when disaster strikes he gets the chance to find out who he once was, but as learns more he begins to wonder if he really wants to remember at all.
1. Chapter 1

Wolf: New story, hope you all enjoy!

He had Yoh, it didn't matter what form his Oversoul was in, or the sheer amount of power that radiated off him, Yoh didn't have the guts to do what needed to be done, the thing that Hao was fully capable of doing. He wanted his lesser half to have that little moment of hope though, before he crushed it, destroying his twin for daring to defy him.

But, now was not the time for such thoughts. He needed his full attention on Yoh if his rage was to be satisfied. He stared into Yoh's face, looking for the expression of hate he knew would be there. His heart jolted slightly though instead. The expression on Yoh's face was a great mixture of things, sorrow, resignation, determination and a trace of anger, but there was no hate in those dark eyes.

That fact was so surprising to Hao. How could Yoh not hate him after what he'd done and tried to do? So many others did. But the aching look of regret on Yoh's normally cheerful face made something deep inside him ache and he did something that he immediately knew was pure foolishness; he hesitated.

Only for a fraction of a second, but by the time he moved to strike Yoh again it was too late. His brother was too close and moving too quickly even for Hao to dodge out of the way. As if in slow motion Hao watched the enormous blade come at him. He felt a twinge of regret and annoyance at the knowledge that he would have to start all over again for a fourth time.

And then the blade struck. He felt it slice across his chest, but the pain didn't register for that moment. For a quick second he was eye-to-eye with his brother and thought that he just might have heard him speak. "I'm sorry." He thought he heard, but he didn't have time to ponder it because his Oversoul disintegrated at the same time massive, excruciating pain screamed through his body.

Moving quickly he teleported as far as he could get away and re-engaged his Oversoul. No one was in sight, which was both good and bad. Good because he wasn't being attacked, and bad because the pain was quickly overwhelming him. Hao would be the last person to admit weakness, but he knew that at this moment, if he did not get help, he would die, again.

The thought was not a particularly troubling one. In fact if he died again he would come back even stronger than this time, and he doubted that anyone would be able to stand up to him then, even if his idiot brother reincarnated as well. It was getting hard to keep up with this train of thought though, his body howled in agony and his head spun, probably from the amount of blood that was spattering on the Spirit of Fire's head.

A memory came unbidden to his mind as his awareness began to become fuzzy at the edges. It was a memory of his mother, and the home they had shared so long ago. His rapidly slowing mind latched on to that memory and he directed his Oversoul to fly, a new goal in sight before he died.

He flew along, barely feeling the changes in the air as he passed over regions and then over the ocean. He was hardly feeling anything now, except for the pain, and even that was fading. If he had been in a right state of mind he would have known that wasn't a good thing, but in his delirium he welcomed the escape.

If he had been right in the head he would have wondered at the fact that he hadn't passed out from blood loss yet. He would have wondered at the pain breathing drudged up and the gurgling sound as he inhaled. He might have even wondered at the coughs that began to bring with them blood, but now nothing mattered but getting home, one way or another.

He was sitting down, his body swaying drunkenly when another jolt went through him, briefly cutting through the haze of pain. And then he was falling, the air whipping his hair into his face. It seemed like forever, and no time at all before pain exploded in his head, and then Hao Asakura ceased to be.

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Wolf: Sorry about the shortness, don't want to give away too much yet. ;P


	2. Chapter 2

Wolf: I own nothing but the ocs that show up in this chapter!

Kiyoko had seen many things in her life, and in the centuries after her death, but a boy falling from the sky was something new even to her. When he had come whistling past her, nearly falling through her before hitting the ground, she had drawn her great broadsword before realizing foolishly that she was dead, what could she have done?

Her second instinct was to inspect the creature. She had always been naturally curious, a trait that sometimes undermined caution, and so she crept to his side and peered down at him. He had fallen on his stomach and seemed to be unconscious, but not dead, as she could hear soft bubbly gasps escaping his lips. She knew those gasps were a bad sign.

She could hear the people that lived in the little house nearby moving about in the field, attracted by the noise of the boy falling to the ground. Unfortunately they were moving in the wrong direction. Kiyoko looked down at the boy again. He was dying, that was for certain, but what did it matter to her? All the same, she got a strange feeling from the boy and felt compelled to help him, even if it was to find out what that strange feeling was.

She swished at the grass with her limited ability as a spirit to make things move. The people moved towards the sound, and as was typical with those who had never seen a battle or death, gasped in surprise and dismay.

"Boy, looks like, can't tell what his face is like."

"Don't move him, it might do more damage!"

"Think he's bleeding internally."

"Call the paramedics, tell them this boy's bleeding out and bleeding inside, tell them they better get the chopper out, and hurry up about it."

The 'chopper' was a noisy contraption that descended from the sky a couple minutes later. She'd seen them from afar, but never up close and as the men were strapping the boy onto a stretcher she stared up at the rotating blades, wondering what kind of power kept this beast of metal up in the sky. After a moment she realized they were loading up the boy into the metal contraption.

Her mind, quick as it ever was, did some very fast thinking. She was thinking the boy was interesting, not many people fell from the sky. She was thinking that he had landed by her and perhaps that was fate. She also thought that it was rather boring to be standing in this field and maybe it was time to move on. She could hardly remember why she had stayed in the first place, something about a promise...

In an instant she was inside the helicopter, sitting down on one of the unoccupied seats. None of the people inside could see her, and indeed she could have walked right through them, but it wasn't something she considered pleasant, and so she stayed away from people as much as possible. She did take the opportunity to finally get a good look at the boy.

He had long, dark brown hair, chestnut brown, she thought. He had a handsome face, for all the blood marring it due to the gash running from his hairline on the left side of his head down through his left eyebrow. The paramedics had taken off the long, cloak-like thing he had been wearing and she could see that his body, though extremely thin, was well muscled. The biggest wound she could see was a massive gash that ran from his collarbone to his navel. She figured that whatever had made that had also done the damage to his insides as well.

The paramedics were working to staunch the bleeding while trying to clear blood from the boy's throat and lungs. A thin tube was eased down his throat and Kiyoko watched as his chest began to move up and down regularly, as opposed to the erratic, quick gasps that had moved it before. An eyelid was peeled back and Kiyoko looked into one onyx eye before the eyelid was released once more. The boy did not wake during any of this, his skin seeming to get paler by the minute, and Kiyoko found herself praying that he would make it.

%&%&%&%

Yumi Myazaki breathed in the disinfectant, starchy and bloody scent of the air in the Intensive Care Unit of the Tokyo Metropolitan Matsuzawa Hospital. She was a nurse, a very good one at that, so good that she had been able to stay on the job long after the age of retirement had come and gone. 82 years and still kicking, she'd crow to all her younger coworkers, who regarded her as teacher, lawmaker and nanny all at once.

It was her crowning glory to have been working this long and she counted off the years with glee. But there was another set of years that she counted off quite a bit more soberly, in fact ten years sober to the day, to be exact. Nursing can take a toll on the heart and some turn to other things to take the hurt away. Her painkiller had been alcohol, but when it almost killed her, she finally sought help.

It wasn't a time of her life that she was proud of, but it was part of her life and she couldn't ignore it. To ignore it would to invite temptation back in, and one drink was always one too many. She shook her head as she absent-mindedly braided her shoulder-length silvery-white hair and adjusted her bifocals over her hazel eyes.

"Enough chitchat ladies." She snapped at the girls idling by the front desk, chatting up the male intern. They snapped to attention, nearly tripping over themselves to obey her. She may have only been about 5'2'', but she commanded attention and respect like she was ten feet tall.

She grabbed the clipboard with her name on it off the desk and scanned through the patients under her care. When she got to one she raised an eyebrow. She tucked the clipboard under one arm and set out at a fast clip down the hallway. A familiar face was walking the other way and she hollered.

"Dr. Soto!" The doctor in question, big burly man with rust-coloured hair and brown eyes, looked up and blinked at her. "I see we have a new patient." He nodded his head, a man of few words. "There's not a lot of information on his sheet."

"We don't have a lot of information." Dr. Soto responded in a deep, slow voice.

"No ID?" Dr. Soto shook his head. "Any leads from the police?" Another head shake. "Hmph, so one of the ones that slipped through the cracks, eh? What do you think, homeless, gang member, what?"

"He was found gravely wounded in a field, and the wounds were made by some kind of weapon. That seems to suggest gang violence of some kind. He is pretty muscular, but very thin as well, though he's not malnourished, so I'm not sure he's homeless."

"Ehm. Hopefully we get some leads soon." She checked the sheet again. "Says he looks to be about fifteen, sixteen years old, chestnut brown hair and black eyes. Single laceration to the chest, multiple rib fractures and extensive internal bleeding. Sounds like he'd been wounded some time before he was found." Dr. Soto nodded again. "Alright, keep him comfortable until he wakes up or checks out, I suppose." She muttered to herself.

She left Dr. Soto and headed for the room with its new occupant. The boy lay still and pale as death, an oxygen tube down his throat. There were straps binding his wrists to the bed, in case he woke up and tried to do something stupid. IVs and sensors were attached to various parts of his body, dripping painkillers and antibiotics, and monitoring his heart and brain, what little there was to monitor. The heartbeat was as slow as could be, and the brain activity was the lowest it could be without the boy being dead.

She made her rounds, checking the morphine and antibiotic drips, making sure the sensors and IVs were perfectly in place, checking his temperature, pupil responses and all that. "You are one lucky kid, you know that?" She murmured to the unconscious boy. "Another person in your position could very well be dead and here you are, still holding on to life. Lucky, lucky boy." She sighed again, looking once at her watch and then down at the boy again. "I can't do much here, can I? And I have other patients. I'll be back later though to check on you again."

Her treatment of her patient was not special, she talked to everyone who was unconscious like this. She firmly believed that they could hear even in that state and hoped that her voice would serve as a bridge back to the world of the living. It always hurt to lose a patient, no matter who they were or how long she'd taken care of them. She was a bleeding heart, that was for certain.

She hesitated a moment before exiting the room, looking back at the boy one last time. As she did so out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw something shift, something red. She didn't look at it, she caught these glimpses all the time, and they only disappeared if she tried to look. She could only hope the presence was a benevolent one.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	3. Chapter 3

Wolf: I own nothing!

The boy stayed unconscious for weeks, no activity, no movement at all. It hurt even an old, world-worn soul like Yumi to see such a young person having to be taken care of in Intensive Care. No one had come forward with information about the boy at all. He was one of the no names, one of the ones who would be marked as 'John Doe' if he died in the hospital.

Yumi was rooting for him though. He must have some fighting spirit in him to have lasted this long and she hoped he would keep on fighting. She wasn't always stationed in the Intensive Care unit, but she always managed to at least pop in to check on the boy once a shift. It made her sad to think that the handsome young man had no one else to pray for him.

After about three weeks she was beginning to give up hope; a large percentage of coma victims never woke up if they had been unconscious this long. Still she spoke to him and touched his forehead, stroked his hair, hoping the contact would draw him out of it. She often chided herself for indulging in these fantasies, nurses learned very quickly they had to be practical, but she couldn't help herself.

She sighed as she headed into the boy's room, dreading the sight of closed eyes and unresponsive body. "Good morning." She told the prone boy, conjuring a wan smile. The smile turned into a frown; she thought she saw him twitch. "Hello?" There! He definitely shifted that time. "Come on, come on, you can do it." She whispered excitedly.

Slowly the dark eyes opened and stared unfocused at the ceiling. Yumi moved around so that she was in his line of vision and waited for his eyes to focus. When they did he stared at her with wide onyx eyes, as though he were staring at some kind of alien. Yumi tried for a smile, but the boy continued to stare at her as though he had never seen anything like her in his entire life.

The boy looked away from her to stare around all that he could see lying down and tied down as he was. His head moved in jerky, uncertain movements, as though the boy wasn't really sure how his muscles worked. The dark eyes finally focused on a far wall, oddly enough the same place that Yumi kept being sure she saw someone wearing red.

He couldn't talk to her, not with the tube in his throat, but Yumi wasn't sure he would be able to talk anyways, not with the way he was acting. It was strange, but she felt like she had seen someone acting like this before, though she couldn't remember where. She shook her head and started looking for causes of the boy's odd behaviour.

First she checked the painkillers, but they were at a low enough level that they shouldn't be messing with his brain functions. She then decided to check pupil response for a concussion or other sort of brain injury. The boy jerked once when she touched his eyelid, but didn't protest after that. His pupil responses were normally, and his eyes were clear, just simply uncomprehending.

As she worked it slowly dawned on her where she'd seen responses like his before. Everyone had them in fact, once in their lives. They were the reactions of a baby, not yet understanding the world he had been thrust into. The boy did have a brain injury after all, and it had robbed him of memory it seemed. She quickly exited the room and yelled for a doctor.

%&%&%&%

Kiyoko was beginning to regret her decision of going with the boy until today. Weeks are nothing to a ghost, not when you've been dead a good five and a half centuries, but then again Kiyoko had been easily bored, even in life. She had been considering seeing what was outside this hospital when the boy had finally opened his eyes.

She had experienced a strange jolt when he'd looked straight at where she was sitting in the corner. He looked as though he could see her, though his eyes were empty, like a vessel that had nothing in it. He'd looked away again when the nurse, Yumi, and a doctor had come back in. They spent a couple minutes chattering, Kiyoko being able to pick out a few words, like 'memory loss' and then moved away for a moment.

Kiyoko took the opportunity to move to the bed, looking down at the boy. The boy stared back, his eyes as wide and unknowing as a newborn babe. He didn't seem to be frightened, but he also didn't seem to know what to make of her, or any of it. She smiled at him kindly, and was rewarded by the corners of his eyes crinkling up in imitation of her smile.

The doctor and the nurse came back and Kiyoko wasn't fast enough to avoid being walked through. She shuddered at the feeling, it being like dipped in warm goo. The doctor also shuddered slightly, feeling just a chill as he had walked through her. The doctor pushed a needle into the boy's skin, making him jerk a little, and injected something. After a moment the boy's eyes glazed over and he slid back into unconsciousness.

The doctor and the nurse carefully manoeuvred the boy's body onto a moving bed and wheeling him out of the room. Kiyoko hesitated a moment before following after them, deciding to sit on the big oxygen tank that was attached to the tube going down the boy's throat. It was easier than walking behind and then being walked through by the multitude of people in the hallway.

They came to a room with a big, strange-looking machine. They set the boy up on the machine and he slowly was slid inside it. Kiyoko heard Yumi call it a 'CAT scan'. Whatever it was it was making pictures of the inside of the boy's head show up on screens and then print out. The doctor and the nurse looked at those pictures and sighed.

"Complete long term memory loss, that's what it looks like." Yumi said in a despairing tone. "And no one to claim him. He really is the boy with no identity after all."

%&%&%&%

Yumi rubbed at her temples when she was alone in her apartment. There was no way of knowing who the boy was now, the police had gotten nothing and the boy certainly wouldn't be able to tell them anything now. It was days like these that made her wish desperately for a drink. Once was all it took though, and so she instead was forced to keep thinking.

The boy would go into rehab, and then probably shifted into the foster system. She had been in the foster care business for many years herself and seen many children who had suffered under the care of their foster parents. For a boy who had lost everything about himself, this would be more traumatizing than for many others. She couldn't stand that thought.

"I could take him in when the time comes." She mused to the walls. "I've got the credentials still, and heaven knows it does get lonely around here now that the kids don't come around anymore, but that's my own damned fault, isn't it?"

She sighed and stood up, heading for the phone. She dialled the number she had known by heart for so many years and waited nervously.

%&%&%&%

Yumi strode with purpose through the doors of the hospital and headed straight for the boy's room. "Hrm-hm." The polite cough drew Yumi's attention just as she was about to walk into the boy's room to Dr. Soto.

"Well?" She asked in an aggrieved tone.

"I heard you have signed up to foster the boy." He said slowly. "Well done. Oh, and he's awake, the tube is gone from his throat but we left the straps on in case he tried to pull out his IV."

"Ah, ok." Yumi replied. Dr. Soto nodded and then went on his way. Yumi stepped inside the room and smiled as the boy looked up at her. His bed had been moved so that he was sitting up. "Hi." She said cheerfully.

"Hi." He parroted. His voice was a low tenor, probably a sexy voice when used in the right tone, but now he just sounded childish. At least he could talk, even if he didn't understand what he was saying.

"Yumi." She told him, patting her chest. "Yu-mi."

"Yumi." He replied dutifully, though he had his head cocked in a way that suggested he really didn't get it at all.

"Oh well, you'll get it in time." She smiled at him and then sat down, pulling his upper body into an embrace. "You're already learning it seems, must be a bright one." The boy let out a happy squawking noise in reply and nuzzled his head against her shoulder. "You are one lucky, lucky boy." She murmured. Lucky, it described him perfectly. "Kei, then, I guess that's your new name."

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Wolf: Kei means lucky, or lucky child, in Japanese, fyi. Anyways, review plz!


	4. Chapter 4

Wolf: I own nothing!

As soon as Yumi stepped into the Intensive Care unit she knew Kei was being trouble. How? One of the nurses was wiping oatmeal off her face. "Didn't listen when he said no, did you?" Yumi cackled slightly. The young blonde nurse glared at her.

"I don't know why he's being so stubborn, he should want to eat!" She grumbled.

"Ah, but he knew I was coming in. Betcha he kept saying Yumi, didn't he?" The nurse nodded grudgingly. "I keep telling you girls when he knows I'm in he doesn't want anyone else and you shouldn't try." With that she swept off to Kei's room.

She peeked in, smiling at the pouting lip that Kei sported. He had been awake for almost two weeks now and understood that his name was Kei and hers was Yumi. He also understood simple words like food, water, bed, ow and especially no. Yumi thought of him as a toddler, a very wilful toddler who wanted things to go his way and when they didn't, he kicked up a fuss.

She stepped fully into view and Kei's face lit up with a beautiful smile. "Yumi!" He cried, reaching out his arms towards her, drumming his feet in happiness. As much as she wanted to smile back she knew that now was not the time. He needed to learn. She set a stern expression on her face and picked up the bowl of oatmeal from where it had fallen.

"And what is this?" she asked in a stern voice. "Have you been naughty?" Kei recognised the tone, and the word naughty and the grin slid off his face to be replaced by a pout. "Now, none of that. You have to behave yourself, none of this." She emphasized by shaking the bowl at Kei. His pout grew and he shook his head from side to side. "Alright, if you're not going to behave, then I'm leaving."

She walked out of the room with the bowl. Immediately Kei protested this with a loud wail. Yumi stifled a smile; the boy certainly had a pair of lungs on him. She refilled the bowl and gestured to the nurse who had tried feeding Kei before.

"He's got to learn he can't be a brat to everyone just because he wants me instead." Yumi explained. "He'll understand enough if he refuses to eat with you and I leave, now won't he?"

"It's hard remembering he's got the mind of a child sometimes, I mean he's so handsome." The nurse said with a little giggle. Yumi shot her a bemused look. "I know, he's not exactly date material, but a girl can dream, can't she?" Yumi rolled her eyes, such fantasies were far behind her now.

She did give Kei a critical look when they got into the room though. Despite the currently tearstained cheeks, jagged scar on his forehead and mussed hair, he was a handsome young man. He had lost some weight during his stay in the hospital and some of his muscle tone too. He snuffled and reached out his arms for her again.

"Yuummmmiiii!" He wailed unhappily. Yumi sat down in one of the chairs next to Kei's bed and raised an eyebrow at the nurse with the bowl of oatmeal. She sat down and lifted a spoonful up for Kei to see. Kei frowned at her.

"No! Yumi!" He insisted. Yumi shook her head and the nurse tried again, but Kei stubbornly closed his mouth and refused to eat.

"Alright, if that's the way you want to be, then I'm leaving." Yumi stated. She turned and walked out of the room. Immediately Kei started up his racket again. She walked back in and looked at him, folding her arms. "Are you going to be good?" Kei looked at her and then the spoon. Yumi could feel him connecting the dots. He opened his mouth and let the nurse pop in the spoon of oatmeal without a fuss.

After a few bites Yumi sat down, but let the nurse keep feeding Kei. His attention slid from her to a corner of the room and then to the spoon. He watched it for a couple minutes, his onyx eyes bright and interested. All of a sudden he reached out, faster than either of them could react, and grasped the hand holding the spoon.

The nurse let out a little shriek of surprise, which made Kei cringe, but he didn't let go. "Spoon." He said. He tugged at the spoon with his other hand. "Spoon."

"I think he wants to try feeding himself." Yumi offered. The nurse relinquished the spoon, but held the bowl. Kei wrapped his hand around the spoon, holding it clumsily, and dipped it in the oatmeal. He accidently tipped it a little and spilled some on his sheets. He did however manage to get most of his spoonful in his mouth.

He continued to feed himself, getting steadier as he went along, until all the oatmeal was done. Yumi took the spoon from him and gave him a pat on the head. "Good boy." She said with approval. Kei beamed at the tone of her voice. He reached out once more for a hug and this time Yumi relented.

%&%&%&%

Kiyoko watched Kei sleep restlessly. He had a tendency to whimper, or moan when he slept and tossed and turned. She figured he was dreaming about whoever he was before he came to this hospital. His long bangs fell to one side, exposing the jagged scar that ran from his hairline at his left temple down through his eyebrow like a fork of lightning. That was the root of his amnesia problem right there.

Kiyoko moved out of the way as Yumi came bustling in, bringing with her a wheelchair. She went over to the bed and gently shook Kei's shoulder. Kei awoke with a start, looking around wide-eyed. He relaxed and smiled happily at the sight of Yumi and yawned cutely. Yumi kissed his forehead and Kei giggled and squirmed happily.

"Alright Kei, we're going to be moving you to a new room today." Yumi said. Kiyoko perked up, interested. she'd been hearing for a couple days that we would be moving, so that Kei could really start his rehabilitation, learning to walk, talk and all that stuff again. After that the old lady, Yumi, would take him home with her to take care of him there. Kiyoko was willing to bet that Kei would be out of the hospital in no time. The kid was extremely bright for someone with brain damage.

Yumi and a big male nurse helped Kei into the chair, working carefully to avoid hurting him by touching any wounds on his chest. His ribs were still healing and there was still that huge gash across his chest. That sort of thing hurt, Kiyoko knew because it was a wound like that, big and deep, that had ended her life.

"Kiyoko come?" Kei suddenly piped up as he was being strapped into the chair. Kiyoko blinked, she knew he liked her, he smiled at her often enough, but she hadn't been sure if he had cared enough to want her to stay. It seemed he did.

"Where's Kiyoko?" Yumi asked while the male nurse muttered about imaginary friends. Kei pointed in Kiyoko's direction. Yumi looked, squinting for a moment before looking towards her out of the corner of her eye. She nodded slightly.

"What's Kiyoko?" She asked Kei. Kei looked at Kiyoko, his face screwed up in confusion. She decided to help him out.

"A samurai." She told him, her voice, deep for a female, surprising even her as she had not spoken for many years in that field. Kei repeated the word warrior to Yumi and her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Kiyoko wasn't surprised by her reaction, there weren't many female, if any other besides her, samurai in this land.

"Unusual." Yumi simply murmured. "Is Kiyoko nice?" Kei nodded his head eagerly. "I think Kiyoko will come then." Kei let out a happy crow, which made Kiyoko smile and bounced in the wheelchair's seat as he was wheeled from the room into the hall. He looked behind and saw that Kiyoko was indeed following them and happily beamed again. Kiyoko thought that he was the happiest kid she'd ever seen.

They went into the elevator, which fascinated Kei intensely, especially when it started going up. When it stopped he let out a squawk and bounced again in his seat, obviously enjoying himself. They came out into another hallway which looked a little more homey than the Intensive Care Unit. The walls were painted soft yellow and the tile floors were a floral pattern rather than stark white.

The room that they turned into was as different from Kei's previous as night was from day. The old room was all white, with harsh fluorescent lights and a bed that was about as plush as a stack of wood. This room was painted sky blue and actually had carpeting. The light came from a round covering over a bulb. The bed still had railings, but it had a blue bedspread and there was a night stand with a lamp, a desk, a dresser and an armchair. It was definitely a room for long-term care.

"This is your new home for now." Yumi said as she helped place Kei in the bed. Kei played with the sheets and snuggled down, looking absolutely blissed out by the softness of the mattress. He stared up at the ceiling and around at the walls before letting out a sigh of contentment. His eyelids began to droop and he let out another yawn.

Yumi bent down to kiss him on the cheek, which prompted him to let out a sleepy murmur. She and the male nurse then left the room, shutting off the light as they went. Kei looked at Kiyoko with heavy-lidded eyes. Kiyoko smiled, and feeling impulsive, imitated Yumi in trying to give him a kiss on the cheek, knowing she would just wind up going through him. But, to her surprise, she actually managed to kiss him on the cheek.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	5. Chapter 5

Wolf: I own nothing!

Kei was sitting in the common room, playing with a simple puzzle. His fingers no longer fumbled when picking things up, he'd learned to walk and he was reading simple chapter books, the kind with pictures on every other page. He stuck his tongue out as he stared at the box, trying to find where the piece that he was holding fit in the puzzle he was building.

"I think you're looking in the wrong spot." Kei turned his head slightly to look at Kiyoko. He'd learned quickly as the weeks when on that people thought he was odd talking to Kiyoko, because no one else could see her but him. Yumi believed him, but when he tried talking to the other doctors they had started running tests on him until Yumi had intervened.

Kiyoko pointed at another patch of the puzzle and Kei looked at the piece again, seeing that it did indeed match. He mouthed a thank you at Kiyoko, which she returned with a smile. She sat down in the seat across from him and watched him with her careful, pale blue eyes.

Kiyoko was tall for a woman, with a narrow, small face surrounded by short, brown hair, lightly tanned skin and muscular. Her outfit was that of a samurai, and she had told him that she had modelled it after a man named Amidamaru, who had lived half a century before her, but her outfit was in red. She carried a large sword strapped to her back. It was specially made for her, being almost as tall as she was, it was unlike a usual samurai's sword.

She believed that the samurai named Amidamaru had been a noble warrior, and that it was the emperor's men, and the emperor himself, who were the evil ones. She lived in a time with a cruel emperor, who took all that the people had from them and cared nothing about their well-being. She was a rebel, a woman who had masqueraded as a man to become a samurai and then joined a resistance group.

Because she dressed like Amidamaru, some said that she was possessed by the spirit of that samurai and her enemies so called her the Demoness or the Fiend reborn. Those that fought with her called her the Blood Orchid, because she wore red and because all enemies that came against her would die by her hand. She had died in an ambush in the field where she was staying when Kei had dropped from the sky. She said she remembered making a promise to another of the rebels, that she would wait for him when the battle was over. But he had never come, and she refused to break her promise, until Kei had fallen from the sky.

Kei's eyes wandered away from the puzzle to another one of the common room's occupants. A young boy, probably only eight, with terrible burns on his face and arms, was putting together a truck made out of Lego. All the sudden the boy looked up, and he grinned widely, revealing a mouth full of broken teeth and stumbled to his feet, running and throwing himself into the arms of a man and woman who had just come in.

Kei watched the three of them with curiosity. The man and woman were very affectionate with the boy, much like Yumi was affectionate with him. He waited some time until the man and woman had left and the boy had gone back to playing before walking over and crouching beside the child.

"Who were those people?" The boy turned and gave him an odd look.

"Those were my parents." He answered.

"Oh, what were they doing here?" Kei asked.

"They were just visiting me." The boy shrugged. "Don't your parents visit you?"

"No, they never have." Kei replied with a confused frown. The boy shrugged again and then raced for the door when a nurse called his name. Kei played with the puzzle again, but his mind was otherwise occupied and so when it was time for him to go back to his room he had not finished it.

Yumi found him brooding in his bed when she arrived later that evening. He barely responded to her kiss on his cheek, so she sat down and took his chin in her hand, turning his face to look into his impossibly dark eyes.

"What's the matter, Kei?" She asked him. Kei took a moment to answer.

"Why haven't my parents ever visited me, Yumi?" He asked her. Yumi blinked and then her eyes grew sad.

"Oh, sweetie..." She sighed and stroked his long dark hair. "What is the first thing that you ever remember?"

"That's easy, your face." Kei replied immediately.

"That was only five months ago." Yumi said kindly. "You're probably about sixteen years old, though." Kei frowned at her.

"Then, why can't I remember all those years?" Yumi tapped the scar on his forehead.

"You fell, and you hit your head, which made you forget. Amnesia, we call it."

"Amnesia." Kei repeated, rolling the word on his tongue. "But, did my parents not want a boy with no memory or something?"

"We didn't know who you are, and the police didn't either. No one came forward to claim you, so it's possible you are an orphan, someone with no family." Yumi explained gently. "We had hoped you would tell us who you were when you woke up, but you had lost your memory."

"Oh, so when I leave the hospital, as the doctors say I will do soon, where will I go if I have no family?" Yumi smiled and patted his head.

"You'll be coming home with me."

%&%&%&%

"Are you ready to go, Kei?" Yumi asked. Kei tied the black converse shoes and stood up, looking down at his 'grandmother', as Yumi had asked that he call her. He was always surprised that she was so much smaller than he when she was so much older. He glanced sideways to see Kiyoko standing there at the ready and gulped, nodding at Yumi.

Yumi took his arm and led him to the elevator. Kei disliked the feeling in the pit of his stomach when the elevator went down, but he stayed quiet. He was nervous, he'd never been outside the hospital, it was his whole world. Oh, he knew about what was outside, he read and he watched TV, but it was one thing to simply know it than to actually experience it.

They walked through the hallways and then threw the front doors, out into the city. Kei recoiled instantly at the wave of sounds, smells and sights that assaulted his senses. Never would he have dreamed that the world could be so loud living in the relative quiet of the hospital. There were so many different smells that his brain felt like it was going to go into overload and there were just so many things to look at that Kei wasn't sure where to turn. He grasped Yumi's hand like a lifeline, terrified of this loud place.

"It's alright Kei, you'll get used to it." Yumi said reassuringly, squeezing his hand. Kei looked down at her sceptically, but didn't say anything. He preferred not to talk if he didn't have to, he found. She led him into a yellow vehicle, a taxi, she called it and helped him buckle in for the first time. Kei grasped at the seat beneath him when the car took off, unused to such speeds. Kiyoko, who was sitting between him and Yumi, chuckled at his expression.

"It's a shame you don't remember the helicopter ride, now that was fun." Kei threw her a look, suggesting what she found fun just sounded scary to him. Kiyoko grinned at him, feeling every bit as wild and rebellious as she had been in life. She wasn't sure why she felt so good again, perhaps having someone to talk to did it. She had been wasting away in that field, bored and way too serious.

"I'll have to get you your driver's license and teach you how to drive." Kei nodded, only half-listening as he stared out the window at the world going by. There were so many things to see and he had names for most of them but it was something else entirely to be able to see them in real life.

They came to a set of low-rise apartment buildings and finally stopped. Yumi, Kei and Kiyoko got out. Yumi paid the cab driver and then the three of them headed inside, up four flights of stairs and down a hallway. She unlocked the door and opened it with a flourish, pushing Kei gently inside.

"Welcome home."

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Wolf: Review plz!


	6. Chapter 6

Wolf: I own nothing!

Kei stepped into a room that was painted a soft cream colour. The bedspread was bright red, a colour that Kei had decided that was his favourite a few months ago. There was an old wooden dresser by the bed and a nightstand. The light was a ceiling fan as well that hummed in a soothing sort of way. A bookshelf stood in the corner, and it was already filled with books.

"Are those for me?" Kei asked Yumi.

"Of course they are, this is your room, silly." Yumi replied with a chuckle. "There's also clothes for you in the dresser, everything you need." She touched his long hair lightly, fondly playing with the dark strands.

"Thank you, obaa-san." Kei said, turning and giving her a hug. He could tug her head underneath his chin now, he was so tall.

"And to think six months ago we weren't sure if you were going to live or not." Yumi stated, looking up at the handsome teenager with the child's smile. Even the jagged scar did nothing to destroy his good looks, in fact it gave him a sort of bad-boy quality that she knew once he was put in school would have the girls swooning over him.

She watched as Kei puttered around the room, poking about in the dresser drawers, the closet and taking books of the shelves to look at them. It had been awhile since there had been anyone in the house with her and even just Kei's presence made things a little less lonely.

"Now, I've arranged for a tutor at the hospital to get you caught up on education, that way we're both in the same place and I don't have to worry about driving to pick you up." She said to him.

"Ok." Kei said. Yumi left the room and heard Kei's padding, quiet footsteps following after her, like a duckling follows its mother, she thought to herself. Suddenly the soft footsteps paused and she turned around to see where Kei had gone. He was staring at the pictures on the wall with a curious expression.

"Those are my children and grandchildren." Yumi explained when Kei looked back at her.

"Will they come visit?" Kei asked.

"No, I haven't seen them for a good many years now." Yumi sighed regretfully.

"Why?" Kei's open, honest face implored her to tell. She fretted a moment, but then realized that Kei had the right to know what demons she had faced down.

"Why don't you come and sit in the kitchen, and I'll make some tea, and then I'll tell you why." She suggested. Kei nodded and padded into the kitchen, sitting down and watching her closely as she puttered about, making the tea. She sat down across from him and watched as he sipped daintily from his mug, both hands encircling it.

"You understand about alcohol, yes?" Kei nodded his head. Living in a hospital and being curious he learned a lot about illness and why people got hurt. "You know it makes people do crazy things and sometimes even forget what they do when they drink too much. Well... I used to drink until I couldn't remember anything."

"Why?" Kei asked.

"Part of it was the death of my husband of so many years and I guess... I guess after a long time having to look after people that are hurt so bad and that die all the time you start looking for a way to deal with the pain, and for me that was drinking. Only problem was, I had to keep drinking to keep the pain away. My children couldn't deal with me anymore, because I became angry when I was drunk and they were afraid and ashamed of me."

"How did you stop?"

"I found myself one day in the middle of the ER screaming at one of the doctors. I was suspended, and told that if I came back to work drunk again, I would be fired. It was a wake-up call, because even underneath all the pain I still loved my job. I got into Alcoholics Anonymous, still go every week, and I haven't touched alcohol in ten years."

"Then why don't they come and visit now?"

"I'm too ashamed to call them." Yumi admitted softly. "Too ashamed that I let my demons control me for so long."

"But you beat those demons, shouldn't your family know that?" Kei asked. Yumi shook her head slightly, but part of her asked 'why not'? Not surprisingly, it sounded like Kei's voice.

%&%&%&%

Kei was sitting in his room, reading the third of the Harry Potter books, his favourite series at the moment, when he heard the doorbell ring.

"Can you get that Kei?" Yumi yelled, a certain amount of eagerness and trepidation in her voice. He favoured Kiyoko with a raised eyebrow and got a shrug in return. He got up and padded in his quiet way to the door. He opened the door to find a tall man standing there. Kei frowned slightly in confusion until he saw that the man had the same hazel eyes as Yumi.

"Er, this is where Yumi Myazaki lives, isn't it?" The man asked nervously. Kei nodded his head and opened the door further, inviting the man inside. Following after the man was a woman, presumably his wife and a teenaged girl who gave him an appraising look as she passed by.

"Hey, aren't you the kid who was in the paper that they were asking for information about?" She asked him.

"He is." Yumi said, emerging from her room. "Hello Hiro and Mei." She smiled at the teenager. "And you must be Chika. The last time I saw you, you were so little. Oh, and this is Kei." Yumi said, drawing Kei back from where he had been trying to shyly hide behind her. "No one ever came forward about him and he has amnesia so he doesn't know who he was anyways, so I adopted him."

"I should have figured you for that, after all, there were always at least two foster kids running around the house when we were kids." Hiro said, smiling slightly. "It's good to see you, kaa-san. We weren't sure if we should come, not after..."

"I know." Yumi sighed. "I've been sober for ten years though now."

"Then why didn't you try and call before?" Mei asked.

"I was too ashamed of what I'd done, wasn't sure if you wanted anything to do with me." Yumi murmured. She yelped as she was enveloped in a warm embrace from her much taller son.

"We'd never do that. All we've wanted all these years was to be able to reconnect with you." Hiro said, sniffling a little bit. "We love you, kaa-san."

"I thought I'd never get to hear those words again." Yumi snuffled, rubbing at her eyes. "Enough with the waterworks though, I have reservations we need to be getting to."

%&%&%&%

The knock on the door came as a surprise to Yumi. Her children and grandchildren had already been through in the last couple weeks, so it couldn't be them. She got up and headed for the door. She opened it to find a dark-skinned policeman standing there with a box.

"Sorry to disturb you ma'am, but the police department has closed the case on the boy in your care, the one that has been named Kei?"

"Yes, and so why are you here then?" Yumi asked. "I am his adoptive parent, aren't I?" she demanded sharply.

"Excuse me, I didn't mean to imply that we would be taking him away, I just was sent with the items Kei was found with. Since the investigation has been closed and they're not evidence for any sort of crime we are releasing them to you."

"Oh, well then, thank you." The officer tipped his hat to her and then headed off down the hallway. Yumi closed the door behind him and placed the box on the kitchen counter, peering inside. There was a pair of red gloves, a belt with a star buckle, and a strange red contraption that looked like feathers with a small screen set into them.

She closed the box and sighed, staring at it. In the background she could hear Kei talking to thin air, or rather, Kiyoko, who he adamantly asserted was real, just dead. She had long believed in spirits and the supernatural, so she did not think that he was crazy.

Her mind turned back to the box. Kei had nightmares sometimes, of fire and maniacal laughter. Yumi believed these were some form of memory from his life before he was Kei. So, on some level the memories were still there, they were just locked away.

The things in the box could trigger his memories. The thought galvanized Yumi and she quietly took the box into her room and hid it in the back of her closet. Part of her knew she was being selfish, denying Kei the opportunity to find out who he'd been, but she didn't care. Kei was hers now, she loved him, and she didn't want to lose him.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	7. Chapter 7

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Kei, wakey-wakey." Kei grumbled and tried to bat away the hands that roughly shook his shoulder. Yumi was persistent however and tugged the blankets off of her adopted son, making him curl up a little tighter, his eyes still stubbornly shut tight. She grinned though, knowing his weakness. Ever so softly she placed one finger on the bottom of his foot.

Kei jumped up with a thought and Yumi cackled with laughter. She didn't even have to actually tickle anymore to get a reaction out of Kei. All she had to do was touch his feet and he was off. He was currently giving her a reproachful look, his long dark hair sleep-mussed.

"Come on, sleepyhead, it's time to embrace the day." Kei yawned at her words, but slid off the bed anyways and padded over to the closet. He got dressed and then eased his body through some of the training moves that Kiyoko had shown him and that he had liked. Kiyoko corrected his stance a couple of times and then the two of them headed into the kitchen.

"Happy Birthday!" Yumi exclaimed when he poked his head inside. Kei stepped inside and gave her a confused look. "Oh, I know we have no idea when your real birthday is, but today is the one year anniversary of you waking up, so since it was the beginning of your life as Kei, I thought it fit." Kei looked over at the calendar.

"May 12th, huh?" He said. "It feels right." Yumi grinned happily and gestured for him to sit down. He did so and she slid a few wrapped up presents over to him. Kei's normally serious face lit up in a childish smile and he eagerly ripped into the gifts, exposing first new books, a new movie and lastly, a reed flute.

He instantly brought the flute to his lips and blew into it, bringing forth a soft, haunting sound. For a few minutes he played with it, getting a feel for the notes he could make and then launched into a simple version of Beethoven's fifth. Kei loved classical music above all else and would surround himself with the sounds of an orchestra for as long as Yumi, and the neighbours, would allow him to listen to them so loud.

"Thank you, obaa-san, they're wonderful." Kei said, sliding an arm around the much smaller Yumi and giving her an affectionate hug. Yumi returned it, leaning happily into Kei's embrace. He was an unusually solemn young man, but loved without inhibition and was willing to display his affection at any given time.

"One year, can you believe it?" Yumi murmured. Kei shook his head, touching the scar on his temple as was his habit. Yumi knew she shouldn't love that scar, but she did. It was the reason she had Kei right now, and she would praise it to her dying day. Her mind drifted to the box still hidden in her closet and she felt a twinge of guilt, but quickly banished it, focusing on Kei.

%&%&%&%

Kiyoko watched Kei twist in his sleep, trapped in the same nightmare he always was. Fire and rage, he had told her, that's all he could remember. She longed to be able to cut down the bad dreams the way she used to cut down her enemies, but she was dead, and they were just dreams. Finally Kei sat up, jolted out of sleep, his hair in disarray and his body coated with the sheen of sweat.

"Always the same?" Kiyoko asked him. Kei nodded and got up, padding for the bathroom. Kiyoko waited outside while he showered. As she did so she began to notice something amiss, but wasn't quite able to put her finger on it.

Kei emerged from the bathroom, fully clothed and still steaming; he liked the water extra hot and the visual effect was like he had sunburn for a good twenty minutes afterwards. He paused as he stepped out, a frown creasing his features. He noticed that something was strange as well. After a moment of looking around he had his answer.

"Obaa-san didn't leave for work." He told Kiyoko.

"She probably forgot to set the alarm." Kiyoko shrugged. Kei didn't look so sure, but he ambled over to Yumi's room and knocked on the door.

"Obaa-san?" He called loudly. "You're late for work." There was no answer and his face grew more troubled. He opened the door and tread quietly across the floor to where Yumi's form could be seen lying on her back in bed. "Obaa-san." Kei persisted, shaking her shoulder gently. Her eyes remained closed and she didn't stir.

Kei then placed one hand on her cheek and then withdrew it again. "She's cold." He said in a voice that shook just the barest bit. He reached out again and placed his fingers against her neck, feeling for a pulse. "She's gone." He whispered finally, withdrawing his hand again. Kiyoko didn't say anything, but followed as Kei stumbled to the kitchen to call the hospital.

%&%&%&%

Kei watched the various people come and go from the kitchen. First the doctors came, and then the coroners that carried her away, and then Hiro came. "I'm sorry, kiddo, but she was getting on in years, her heart probably just stopped." Kei flinched when Hiro rested his hand on his head.

"Please, I'd just like to be alone for a little while." He whispered. Hiro nodded and left the apartment, probably to go arrange for a funeral. Once the door closed Kei let the tears fall. A hand touched his shoulder, but he allowed this touch, knowing it was Kiyoko.

"Have you ever lost someone you loved?" Kei asked hoarsely. Kiyoko sighed sadly.

"More times than I care to remember." She replied. "It was bad times, the emperor taxed the people heavily and a lot of them either starved or were beaten for not having the taxes and then later died of their injuries. It's good she died like this. She died happy."

"I guess so." Kei sniffed. He restlessly shifted around and then got up and headed for Yumi's bedroom, desperate for even a feel of her. He touched the photos by her bed, some of them of him, and touched the little knick-knacks she kept there and on the dresser. He opened up the closet and sat down among the dresses and pants and such, breathing in the smell of laundry detergent.

He leaned back and felt something sharp jab into his back. He turned and found a small box in the back of the closet, one he had never seen before. Part of him thought that it was probably something private, but his curious nature won out and he pulled the box into the light. In his mind he thought that he might as well know what was in it before everything in the apartment got taken away.

He carefully pulled the box open and found a note inside addressed to him. He unfolded it and began to read.

_Dearest Kei,_

_This box holds the things that you were found with when you were brought to the hospital. I'm sorry I held them back for you, but I was so scared of losing you. I hope you can forgive me for this._

_Yumi_

Kei stared at the page for a long time. "Of course I forgive you." He murmured to himself. He folded the note up again, placing it in his pocket and then looked inside the box. He first lifted out a pair of heavy red and black leather gloves that had a white star embossed on each of them. He pulled one on, finding it fit him perfectly.

_Gloved hand reaching down, pulling the other up by the hair, malicious triumph in his heart. _

Kei yelped and threw the glove away from himself, skin crawling from the malice in the vision. "What happened?" Kiyoko demanded.

"I-I saw something bad." Kei replied. He looked in the box again and pulled out a black belt with a star buckle. A pair of heavy, circular, metal earrings had the same star on them. "Must have really liked stars." He muttered to himself. The last thing he pulled out was an odd little contraption, like feathers with a screen set in it.

He touched the screen and it lit up, showing him a name. "Hao Asakura?" He muttered, reading aloud. "Is that my name? I think I like Kei better, if so." He peered at the screen, his frown deepening a little. "What does that number mean?"

"It's some kind of measurement, but what would be over a million like that?" Kiyoko asked, leaning over his shoulder. Kei shrugged and then dropped the thing when it began to beep. He cautiously picked it back up and stared at the screen flashing 'NEW MESSAGE'. He touched the screen again and words scrolled across the page.

**The Shaman King tournament is back underway. All contestants must report to the Patch village before the summer solstice to be eligible to compete. For convenience a map has been provided.**

"Tournament? Patch Village? This just keeps getting stranger and stranger." Kei murmured. He tapped the screen again and a map came up, making him raise his eyebrows. "That's all the way in America." He was silent for a long moment, his forehead creased as he thought. "We should go."

"What? Are you crazy?" Kiyoko demanded.

"I have my own bank account and Yumi put away a lot of money for me in there, and I know where she keeps her emergency money in the house." Kei said calmly.

"You're seventeen, you're just a kid."

"How old were you when you started learning to be a samurai?" Kei asked. Kiyoko opened and then shut her mouth, making a small noise of aggravation and disgust. "I want to know who I was and this might be the best way to do it. Are you with me?"

"I'm not about to let you go gallivanting off on your own." Kiyoko grumbled. Kei grinned at her and went to his room to start packing.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	8. Chapter 8

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh didn't join in too much with the others greeting friends they had not seen since the Shaman King tournament had been dissolved last year. He was too busy looking for one shaman in particular, one Hao Asakura, whom he had fought for control of the Great Spirit more than a year ago. The memory was painful, like a barb piercing his heart, digging deeper with each face that was not Hao's.

His standoffish attitude didn't escape everyone's notice. Ren was regarding him with fierce golden eyes that held a touch of concern. Yoh tried to smile at him, but the way Ren's eyes narrowed he knew he hadn't done a good job. He turned away, scanning the crowd desperately again, until a strong hand gripped his arm, dragging him away from the crowd.

"Do you really want him back here?" Ren demanded shortly when they were alone. Yoh shook his head dismally.

"I just feel so..."

"Guilty?" Yoh nodded miserably. "You probably always will." Ren replied, his eyes softening. "But you need to remember that you did it to protect the rest of the world."

"I know. I just wish it didn't have to come to that." Yoh sighed. "And maybe, if I saw him, the nightmares would stop." Ren didn't have to ask to know what Yoh was talking about. Everyone who had lived in the inn for the last year or so had been awakened at one time or another by Yoh's screams as he struggled in his sleep against Hao taking his soul over and over again.

"We're all keeping our eyes open, if he's here, we'll see him." Ren stated, and then went to join the others in greeting Lyserg. Yoh ambled over as well, and was relieved to see that Lyserg was no longer wearing the uniform of the X-Laws. They spoke for awhile and then separated to find places to stay. Yoh and his friends and family chose two houses that were next to each other to stay in, meaning they could mingle without having to go far.

"I'm going to go for a walk." Yoh said when they were all settled in.

"I'll come." Manta offered. Yoh shook his head and smiled slightly.

"I'd like to be alone for awhile." Manta nodded in understanding and patted Yoh's knee in a comforting manner. All of his friends knew that he was hurting; he'd been less lively in the last year than he'd ever been, and all of them knew why. His friends were understanding and supportive, as were his parents, but Anna and his grandfather took every opportunity to yell at him, and in Anna's case, piled more work on him. He was more lean and fit than ever because of this.

Amidamaru was the only one to follow him as he trudged off into the forests beyond which was the desert and cliffs that surrounded the Patch village, hemming it in. He wound his way slowly through the trees, his thoughts on the events of a year ago.

"Ren's right." Amidamaru said quietly. "You did what you had to do."

"Thanks, Amidamaru, I know. But that doesn't make it easier to bear." Yoh replied with a faint sigh. They continued along in silence, heading for the small brook that gave way to a shallow, calm pond. He had always liked the quiet around the pond, it helped him meditate.

As he turned the corner that would lead him directly to the pond he got a horrible shock. The person who he was so desperate to see, and terrified to confront, was standing with his back to him, staring down at the water of the pond. Hao Asakura was alive and well!

Yoh stood rooted to the spot, his heart hammering. He was terrified and elated, not sure what to do, so he just stood, frozen. Hao seemed to sense his presence, because he stiffened and turned. He stared at Yoh in surprise for a moment and then took a small step forward. Terror seized Yoh and he bolted.

"Hey, wait!" He heard Hao call behind. Yoh didn't stop however, and sped up when he heard footsteps running after him. "Wait a minute, please!" That slowed him down a little. Please? Since when did Hao say please? "I just want to talk to you!" Yoh slowed further and then finally stopped in his tracks, but didn't turn around. Something wasn't right here.

"Hey, why'd you run?" Hao's voice asked from behind him, sounding bewildered. "I'm not going to hurt you or anything."

Yoh gulped and slowly turned around to face his twin. His eyes widened as he realized just how... normal Hao looked. He was wearing blue jeans and a red t-shirt along with converse shoes. Dark, solemn, but worried eyes stared back at him and Yoh's eyes flicked to the jagged scar on his forehead for a quick minute. "My name's Kei, what's yours?"

Yoh was really thrown for a loop and he just gaped at the boy in front of him. Dark eyes began to look even more worried when he didn't answer. Yoh swallowed thickly and forced himself to speak. "My name is Yoh."

"Yoh, ok." Hao, no... Kei, nodded his head. "How come you look like me?"

"You don't know me?" Yoh asked in reply. Kei shook his head, his eyes troubled.

"I don't remember anything past over a year ago." He said, touching the scar on his forehead absentmindedly.

"You don't remember?" Yoh repeated. Kei nodded slightly. Yoh felt relief wash over him. Hao was alive, but he didn't remember being Hao. Kei seemed nice enough, maybe this could work. "I'm your twin brother, Kei." Kei's dark eyes grew round and he stared at Yoh in astonishment.

"But, how come no one was looking for me then, if I had family?" He asked in an upset tone. Yoh felt bad for him, but he gnawed at his lip, wondering how much information would jog Kei's memory and turn him back into Hao.

"It's complicated." He finally said slowly. "But, you did some bad things, before..."

"Did it have anything to do with fire?" Yoh, surprised, could only nod. Kei's eyes grew troubled again.

"I... I'm not sure I'm ready to know, if that's the case." He whispered. Yoh felt relieved at that, he didn't really want to talk about it at all.

"If you don't remember, I don't suppose you remember how to use your powers at all, either?" Kei tilted his head at him.

"Powers?" Yoh chuckled.

"Have you noticed that you can see spirits?" Kei nodded his head. "You're what's known as a shaman, you can communicate with the spirits of the deceased. A shaman can exorcise a spirit, talk to them, even use their abilities to fight. That's what the tournament here is, it's a fight between all eligible shamans to determine who will hold the allegiance of the most powerful spirit in existence, the Great Spirit."

Yoh pointed beyond the trees, where the blue-white light of the Great Spirit shone. Kei looked as well, his face thoughtful and calm. "So, I am eligible?" He asked.

"You're probably the most eligible of us all." Yoh replied. "You... before when you were..."

"Hao. Wasn't that my name?" Kei asked, as though enquiring after the name of some half-remembered acquaintance. Yoh nodded.

"Hao was the most powerful shaman in existence." Yoh said quietly.

"So that means that I'm the most powerful shaman in existence then." Kei stated. Yoh nodded again. "How do I use these powers though?"

"Do you have a spirit ally?" Yoh asked, thinking that Kei would not.

"I have a friend, who's a spirit." Kei lightly replied, surprising Yoh. "Kiyoko?" Yoh blinked at the young woman who appeared floating beside Kei. She wore an outfit similar to Amidamaru's, but in red. Pale blue eyes stared at him suspiciously from a surprisingly dainty looking face. Yoh felt Amidamaru appear beside him and watched Kiyoko's eyes go wide.

Kei gave her a look of surprise as she let out a faint squeak, and then vanished again. "Kiyoko?" he asked the empty air. "Where'd you go?" Kei turned back and gave Amidamaru a speculative look. "You wouldn't happen to be Amidamaru, would you?" Amidamaru nodded and Kei smiled, a surprisingly dazzling smile. "She deeply admires you."

"Does she?" Amidamaru said in bewilderment. "Well, I am honoured, I'm sure."

"Never seen her act like that before." Kei muttered wonderingly, shaking his head. Yoh gazed at him worriedly, suddenly thinking about what might happen if certain people saw him wandering around.

"Has anyone else seen you?" He asked. Kei gave him an odd look.

"No, I came, I picked one of the houses to stay in because of the message I got on the odd little thing and I came out here to wander around for awhile, and then found you." He answered.

"It might be wise for you to lie low for awhile, don't let anyone see you." Yoh advised.

"How come?"

"There are quite a few people here that don't like the person you were."

"Oh." Kei's brows drew together in an anxious frown. "But I'm not Hao anymore."

"Trust me, some of these people won't wait long enough to figure that out." Yoh said, shivering a little at the thought of the X-Laws getting their hands on him. Kei seemed to understand his meaning, and swallowed nervously. "I should go before someone comes looking for me, but I'll meet you later, here?"

Kei looked at his watch. "How about at 8 pm?" Yoh nodded his head. Kei took a step forward and then hesitated. Yoh yelped in surprise as he was suddenly engulfed in a bone-crushing bearhug. Just as quickly it was gone and Kei was waving goodbye as he walked away. Yoh lifted his own hand in reply, stunned and bewildered by what had just happened.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	9. Chapter 9

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh was anxious as they sat at one of the cafes in the Patch village, scanning the crowd, looking out just in case Kei decided he wasn't going to hide. Yoh hoped he would take his warnings seriously, especially since the X-Laws had recently shown up. He was afraid for Kei's well-being, and knew he would have to bring food to the other in order to keep him hidden.

"Yoh, you've barely touched your food." Ryu commented. Yoh looked down at his bowl and saw that he hadn't eaten much at all.

"Are you feeling fine?" Faust asked, taking Yoh's wrist in his fingers and checking his pulse.

"I'm just nervous." Yoh said truthfully. His friends nodded in understanding, figuring he was talking about Hao. He was, in a way. "I'll save this for later." He said of the food, thinking he could bring it to Kei. He went to the counter and asked Silva to wrap it up.

"Haven't seen Hao yet." Silva commented. "I guess that's not much of a comfort for you, though." Yoh blinked at him in surprise. "You never wanted it to come to killing Hao, I know you better than that. I think you wanted to be able to convince him to stop."

"You think I could have?" Yoh asked. Silva shrugged.

"Stranger things have happened." He replied. "If anyone could do it, it would have been you." Yoh gazed at him speculatively. He needed someone to help him hide Kei for the time being. If that someone was Patch, with access to food and other supplies, it would be that much better.

"When do you get off work, Silva?" Yoh asked.

"My shift ends in a couple minutes." Silva answered, giving Yoh an odd look.

"Can you meet me outside when you are done?" Yoh asked. "I have something I want you to see." Silva nodded and didn't ask further, though his dark brown eyes remained confused. Yoh made some excuse to his friends as they were leaving and stuck around, waiting for Silva to appear. The tall Native American man emerged wearing his cloak and the befuddled expression still on his face.

Yoh smiled at him, and gestured for him to follow, the little box of leftover food cradled in his hands. "I have to ask you to swear to me right now that you won't tell anyone what I'm about to show you." Yoh told Silva seriously. Silva frowned slightly, stubbornly. "You trust me, right?"

"I do." Silva responded slowly. He thought about it a moment. "Alright, I swear not to tell anyone about whatever it is you are about to show me." Yoh smiled in relief and then silently led Silva into the forest, to where Kei was waiting for him.

He spotted Kei first, sitting on a rock overlooking the pond, staring down at the water. Yoh knew the instant Silva noticed him because he halted and inhaled sharply. Kei looked up and around at the sound and his eyes fixed on Silva, the dark depths staring into him uncertainly. Kiyoko, standing next to him, moved her hand to the hilt of the massive sword strapped across her back, her pale eyes burning holes into Silva, daring him to try anything.

"Silva, this is Kei. Kei, this is Silva, he's a friend." Yoh introduced. Kei gave him a dubious look.

"Kei?" Silva repeated in a disbelieving tone. "But he's-"

"Kei doesn't remember anything past when he woke up in the hospital last year. He came here looking for answers." Yoh interrupted. He watched Silva's frown deepen and watched Kei grow more uneasy, shuffling his feet nervously. Silva's eyes saw that and they softened a little, trying to look at Kei with different eyes now.

Yoh felt Silva relax a little and moved forward, holding out the box of food for Kei. "I thought you might be hungry." Kei all but snatched the box out of his hands and began to eat with gusto. "I guess you were hungry."

"I didn't go where people could see me, just like you asked, so I couldn't get food." Kei replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Sorry, but Silva might be able to help with that." Yoh said, looking up at Silva.

"You want me to bring food for him?" Silva asked.

"He'd be killed if he set foot in the crowded areas of the village, he can't defend himself." Yoh told him. "I need someone to help me keep him hidden until he can at least defend himself well enough to combat the X-Laws."

"X-Laws?" Kei asked, a frown creasing his forehead.

"They're basically a cult and they live to destroy Hao." Yoh explained gently. "They like to torture their victims." Kei shuddered slightly at the thought.

"Where have you been living, Kei?" Silva asked in interest.

"I lived with my obaa-san, her name was Yumi." Kei answered.

"Where is she now?" Yoh asked.

"She died a couple days ago." Kei responded, hugging his arms to his chest.

"You don't seem too upset about it." Silva pointed out.

"That's the odd part, somehow I know that she's alright, and there's no need to be sad that she's gone." Kei said, scratching his head. "I don't know why I feel like that."

Yoh and Silva looked at each other. So he remembered on some level, something at least. Yoh could see the worry in Silva's eyes, but shook his head. He knew that if they didn't jog his memory too much they wouldn't have any trouble with Kei.

"That is right, Kei. Your obaa-san is within the Great Spirit now." Kei looked towards the blue-white light and then back at Yoh. "All spirits, when they pass on, become part of the Great Spirit, in whatever reality of the afterlife that they choose to believe in."

"So she is in a good place then." Kei nodded his head happily. "That makes me glad."

"So, can you bring him the stuff that he needs?" Yoh asked Silva.

"I'll have to know where he's staying." Silva stated. Kei nodded and gestured for the both of them to follow. Yoh and Silva filed after him. Kiyoko drifted backwards beside Kei, keeping her pale eyes trained suspiciously on Silva. Silva nodded and smiled at her, but her gaze didn't waver.

"She seems rather protective of him." Silva whispered to Yoh.

"He fell from the sky at my feet." Kiyoko stated in her deep voice. "If that is not fate, I do not know what is. I will protect him because he needs protecting from what he doesn't understand."

"Thank you, Kiyoko." Kei said softly. They came to a small house, one floor and Kei lifted a hand. "This is where I'm staying."

"It's a little out of the way, that's good." Silva mumbled. "Is there anything besides food that you think you need?"

"There's not a lot of anything in there. I like to read, and the blankets seem kind of ratty, if you don't mind." Kei asked humbly. Silva nodded his head. Kei smiled, his whole face lighting up as he did so.

"We're going to get out of here, if you're ok. Silva's got work to do, and so do I." Yoh told him. Kei's face fell a little.

"Oh, if you need to go, that's ok."

"I'll come back first thing in the morning." Yoh sighed, seeing that Kei was lonely. Kei smiled again and moved forward to envelop Yoh in another bone-crushing bearhug. Yoh returned it this time and heard Kei chuckle happily. Kei then walked into the house, waving goodbye to both of them.

Yoh and Silva turned away, walking back into the forest. Silva was shaking his head as they walked. "What's the matter?" Yoh asked. Silva gave him a wry look.

"I have to say, that was probably the oddest thing I've ever seen in my life." Silva replied.

"I know what you mean, but it's kind of a relief at the same time." Silva nodded in agreement. "You're going to keep this a secret, right?"

"I said I would, didn't I?" Yoh smiled in relief at Silva and the two of them kept walking.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	10. Chapter 10

Wolf: I own nothing!

Silva was hard-pressed not to run right back and start asking questions of the quiet, well-mannered young man who had Hao's face, but none of his mannerisms. Yoh seemed to sense this and grasped at his arm.

"I'm worried that revealing too much will bring back old memories." Yoh told him. Silva gulped and nodded his head in understanding.

"I don't even know what he likes to eat." Silva suddenly realized with dismay.

"why don't you bring him back the blankets and some books first, and then ask him what he would like you to bring for him?" Yoh suggested.

"That's a good idea." Silva patted Yoh's head affectionately. "There's a good head on those shoulders, despite what everyone else seems to think."

"Ahh, that's sort of self-defence, people don't think you're much of a threat if you seem clueless." Yoh explained. Silva thought about this for a moment and decided it was clever reasoning. No one ever thought that a bumbling idiot could do anything threatening, and that's exactly what Yoh had made himself out to be. Of course, he'd gotten enemies anyways, but technically that was Hao's fault.

"You really believe he's not faking it?" Silva asked.

"Hao's pride is too great for him to fake being amnesiac." Yoh responded.

"I suppose you're right about that." Silva chuckled. "I'll see you later." He said as they came to the house where Yoh was staying. Yoh nodded and then flinched when Anna's voice screeched at him from within the house. He gave Silva a look and then ambled into the house to face the music. Silva shook his head and walked on, heading for the hidden village which housed the Patch and their families.

He had a lot to think about and so nearly ran head-on into Kalim coming from the other direction. "Whoa there, better watch where you're going." The craggy-faced Patch smiled at his friend. "Got your head in the clouds, Silva?"

"I suppose so, just a lot to think about with all these shamans back around here." Silva answered. Kalim nodded seriously.

"Thank the Great Spirit that Hao hasn't shown up yet." Kalim chuckled.

"Yeah..." Silva replied. _Hao is here, but he's not really Hao. _He thought to himself. _How's that for confusing._ He said nothing aloud though and clapped Kalim on the shoulder in a friendly way before continuing on.

He thought about just heading home and trying to get some shut-eye, but his mind was buzzing too loudly to even think about a nap. He decided he would take Yoh's advice and get Kei some blankets and books for his house. He was too curious to stay away for too long anyways. The storerooms had all sorts of essentials and non-essentials for the shamans that were currently living what was known as the 'public village'.

Silva found a set of sheets and blankets and carted out a box of books, placing the blankets on top and lifting them up. He was thankful that no one intercepted him with these items, though he was sure he would be able to make some form of excuse. He ambled along, heading into the forest at the first chance he could.

When he spotted the little house where Kei was staying he got a little scare as Kiyoko appeared directly in front of him, frowning slightly. "I just want to let you know that if you do anything that results in him getting hurt, I will haunt you until the end of your days." She hissed in a low voice.

"Did you say the same thing to Yoh?" Silva asked.

"No, I could tell that once he knew that Kei wasn't the one he fears, that he was ready to help." Kiyoko replied. "You still have the doubts in your eyes, and I worry about that."

"I trust Yoh, and I will not do anything to hurt Kei." Silva promised gently. Her pale eyes stare hard into his eyes and then nodded slightly.

"He's inside, you can go right in." She told him. Silva smiled at her and went inside. Kei was sitting at the kitchen table, drumming his fingers against the wood. He looked up at the sound of Silva's footsteps and stood to take the box from him.

"Thank you, Silva." Kei said politely, peeking under the blanket, eyes lighting up at the sight of all the books inside.

"I was going to ask what you like to eat, so I know what to bring you." Kei set the books down and gazed up at him solemnly. Silva's eyes once again flicked to the scar on his forehead, wondering just how buried the old memories were.

"I was thinking about that, actually." Kei said slowly. "It might be easier, instead of having full meals brought to me, that if you simply brought me groceries and I can cook for myself. There's a stove, a fridge, an oven, everything I need and I know how to cook. But, is that easier, I mean I don't want to inconvenience you any."

"No, I think that works out quite nicely." Silva replied.

"I mean if you can't get the ingredients..." Kei trailed off, looking worried. Silva chuckled slightly.

"We run a village which provides for all the shamans that reside there for a good number of months. We have enough food to feed an army, and we're always throwing away food that doesn't get used. Taking some of it to feed you won't inconvenience us at all." Silva assured him. Kei's face relaxed into a smile.

"I guess I'll make a list then. Do you have a minute?" Silva nodded his head and sat down, watching as Kei rummaged around for a pen and some paper. He noticed that Kei had impeccably neat writing for a teenager. Kei noticed him watching and grinned.

"My obaa-san was a bear for good penmanship." He explained.

"So, how did you get to this place?" Silva asked.

"My obaa-san had a box of the things I was found with when I was brought to the hospital." Kei replied. "One of them was this odd little piece of technology that had a message for Hao Asakura."

"The oracle pager." Silva murmured. Kei looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Is that what it's called? Anyways, it told me to come here for the Shaman King tournament and I thought maybe I could go and get some answers."

"Only, you got here and discovered you might not want answers after all." Kei nodded, his eyes troubled.

"Everything that I've seen and heard so far about who I was makes me feel nervous, and then there are the nightmares that I keep having."

"What kind of nightmares?" Silva asked curiously. Kei was silent for a moment.

"Fire and rage, that's all I can ever remember about them, but they scare me." He said softly. "I think Yoh's afraid of saying too much to me anyways." Silva stared him in surprise. "I've always been good at figuring things out. Obaa-san figured my IQ was in the genius level, because I pick up on things so quick."

"That wouldn't surprise me." Silva murmured, thinking about the intelligence that Hao always casually displayed along with his power and that constant enigmatic smirk. It was strange to compare Hao to Kei, because though Kei displayed some of the aspects that Hao did, he was so much politer and gentler and somewhat unsure of himself. It was hard to see Hao in him the more time Silva spent with him.

"Here." Kei held out the piece of paper to him. Silva folded it up and placed it in his pocket. "Thank you for the blankets and the books."

"No problem." Silva smiled and left the house. Yoh was coming from the other direction and smiled as he saw him. Silva found himself thinking that Yoh and Kei now had similar smiles, open and honestly joyful.

"How's it going, Silva?" Yoh asked.

"It's good, it's good." Silva placed a hand on Yoh's shoulder. "You may want to be quick about teaching him to use his abilities, I don't like the thought of the X-Laws getting their hands on him." Yoh blinked up at him, smile turning gentle.

"It's hard not to like him, isn't it? He's just sweet." Silva nodded and Yoh laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not about to let anything happen to him." Silva realized as he walked away that he felt the same way.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	11. Chapter 11

Wolf: I own nothing!

Amidamaru hung back as Yoh went inside to chat with Kei. He floated upwards, scanning the area for anyone that might be coming this way that would mean Kei or Yoh harm. His opinion of Kei had been cemented as positive when he'd watched Kei hug Yoh for the first time. There had been such joyful affection in it.

He looked around, musing softly to himself and nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of pale blue eyes staring at him. Kiyoko jumped back from her perch at the edge of the house's roof and bowed awkwardly to him. He stared at her curiously for a long moment, having never met a female who was also a warrior before. He noticed then a steady blush creeping up her face.

"Good afternoon." He said politely. Her mouth opened and closed, but she seemed unable to speak, the blush stealing over her entire face, turning her a shade almost identical to the outfit she was wearing. Amidamaru then remembered that Kei said she'd idolized him. It was no wonder she was tongue-tied. "Kei said you admired me, the Fiend?"

Kiyoko shook her head quickly. "Not the Fiend, not the monster they all thought you were. Some knew the true story, how the emperor wanted you to kill your best friend and how you risked your life to save him. That's the man that I admire." She told him. "They used to say I must be possessed by your demonic spirit. I used to take that as a compliment."

"How did you become a samurai, I mean it's no easy task, even for a man." Amidamaru pointed out.

"It certainly wasn't easy, and it took many years of hiding my femininity to get it done." She said. "But I did it, and then I went rogue. An emperor who would take food from the starving mouths of his people deserves no allegiance."

"Did they have names for you, as they did for me?"

"Those who were my enemies called me the Demoness." Kiyoko replied with an ironic smile. "Those that knew me called me the Blood Orchid."

"A testament to your prowess?" Amidamaru guessed. Kiyoko nodded her head sombrely. "So, you were very good?"

"Some say I was as good as you were." Kiyoko said, meeting his eyes steadily. Amidamaru felt admiration rise in his own heart at her attitude.

"Would you like to test that theory?" She blinked and then her eyes grew wide in understanding.

"I'm not sure that's wise..."

"Why not? We're dead, not as though we can hurt each other." Amidamaru reminded her. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she considered this.

"Alright, it's been five hundred and fifty years since I've had a good fight, might be worth seeing if my skills have gotten rusty." She mused. She hopped down from the roof onto the grassy back yard of Kei's house, unsheathing her sword. Amidamaru descended a little slower, eying the weapon she carried.

"That's an unusual sword, may I see it?" Kiyoko blinked at him again, taken aback, before turning the large sword and offering the hilt to him.

"Hmm, I don't think I've seen anything quite like this." He said, testing the weight and heft of it.

"I had it specially made for me, there is no other like it in all the land." Kiyoko said with a proud lift of her chin. "It's gotten me through many a fight."

"It's heavy, you must be very strong." Amidamaru commented.

"I built up my strength by carrying rocks up hills and mountain passes." She explained. "I wanted a sword that would make a statement, and be remembered."

Amidamaru handed the sword back to her. He had more than just a little admiration for her now; he couldn't have wielded that sword. She took a fighting stance, her blue eyes challenging him. Amidamaru brought out his own sword. As soon as he did Kiyoko attacked, and he was immediately on the defence.

He was amazed at how fast she could move, despite the weight of the sword she carried. She didn't fall for any tricks either, her pale eyes riveted to his face and her expression like stone. Amidamaru gave as good as he got though and soon it was unclear who had the advantage.

"Kiyoko, what are you doing?" Kei's alarmed yelp halted them. In memory of breath they once took they both panted as they stared at each other.

"It's ok, Kei. They can't hurt each other, they're ghosts." Yoh assured him.

"But why are you fighting?" Kei asked, stepping between the two of them.

"We were seeing how our skills stacked up to each other, nothing to worry about." Kiyoko soothed. Kei's worried face relaxed again.

"Yoh's been telling me I need to learn to fight." He informed her cheerfully. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why's that?" Yoh found the pale gaze on him and gulped slightly. In answer he undid the first couple of buttons on his shirt, revealing a few of the many scars that criss-crossed his body. Kei and Kiyoko stared, unable to believe their eyes.

"Where... where did you get those?" Kei whispered, reaching out to touch one of the scars he could see.

"Shaman fights mostly." Yoh replied calmly. "A lot of them here. People get hurt here, Kei, some have even been killed."

"By Hao?" Kei whispered. Yoh jerked as though shot and that was all the answer Kei needed. "He wasn't a good man, was he?"

"I don't know about that, the concept of good and evil can be elastic." Yoh replied. "And it wasn't just him, the X-Laws did their fair share of killing."

"Why?"

"They believe that all who don't follow their ways and their ideas are sinners and if you refuse to see as they do, you get punished for your sins." Yoh said with a shudder.

"Sounds like your typical cult." Kiyoko muttered.

"Except this one has firepower to back up their madness." Amidamaru added.

"And they would kill Kei if they got the chance?" She asked.

"Probably not right away, they'd probably torture him first." Yoh said with a bleak look. It was Kei's turn to shudder.

"Did Hao ever give you any of those scars?" he asked in a halting voice.

"One or two, but they're not so bad, considering..." he trailed off, thinking about the wounds that he had given Hao, the wounds that had obviously led to Hao becoming Kei. "Do you know how to fight at all, Kei?"

"Kiyoko's been showing me a few things." Kei replied brightly, his dark mood forgotten.

"I'll have to set you up some sort of training regiment." Yoh muttered. "And we'll have to get you a weapon, for when you and Kiyoko merge to fight and later on you can merge her with the weapon."

"I can do that?" Kei asked wonderingly.

"Yeah, it's pretty exhilarating the first time you do it too." Yoh said, smiling.

"Sounds like it would be." Kiyoko said. "If we're talking weapons I'd want something like this." She held up her sword. Yoh looked at it, brow scrunching as he thought.

"I don't think we'd find anything like that in the Village." He said.

"We could bring back Mosuke, and get him to make them a sword." Amidamaru suggested. Blue eyes widened as Kiyoko stared at him, at a loss for words. She vanished again.

"What wad that about?" Kei asked.

"Er, Mosuke made my sword, and is credited to being the greatest swordsmith that Japan's ever seen." Yoh explained. "I think we may have overwhelmed her."

Kei shook his head despairingly. "I never knew."

"Knew what?"

"That she could act like such a... girl!"

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Wolf: Review plz!


	12. Chapter 12

Wolf: I own nothing!

For the next few days Kei devoted his time between learning from Yoh and practicing on his own. Yoh found out just how quick Kei was at learning and was happy; the faster he learned, the better he could defend himself. The only hitch in the process was finding a weapon for Kei.

Kiyoko was stubbornly insistent that the sword should be like the one she used, but the only ones Yoh knew capable of summoning spirits from the afterlife were Anna and his grandmother. Anna he knew would never help them, even if they could convince her Kei was not Hao. He wasn't sure about his grandmother, but he'd rather be safe than sorry, so he said nothing to her.

Silva and Yoh talked about it a long time, trying to figure out who would be safe to tell. Yoh figured Ren, Horohoro, Ryu and Faust would have no problem with it. Manta would take some convincing, as he had a tendency to panic. Silva thought it might be alright to let Kalim in on the secret, but both of them were extremely cautious and had yet to say a word to anyone else.

Kei took being isolated very well. He preferred his privacy anyways and was truthfully somewhat shy when it came to new people at the best of times. The possibility that the people here might kill him just made him that much more nervous. Besides, he liked it when it was Yoh and him; Yoh told so many wonderful stories about his life.

Kiyoko was impatient though. The more she heard about what the Shaman King was about, especially the fighting, the more she itched to get into battle. She kept trying to challenge Amidamaru to more fights, but he told her to save her strength for the training she and Kei did together. She was mildly annoyed by this, to the point that she would refuse to talk to Amidamaru for awhile before finally going back to talk to him again.

Yoh told Kei that Kiyoko must have a crush on Amidamaru, because the normally fierce warrior lady would get all tongue-tied and blush when he was around a lot of the time. Kei tried to question Kiyoko about it but she had turned red, muttered and disappeared, so he didn't bring it up again, but he had his answer anyways.

Kiyoko sighed as the two of them wandered through the forest. "You need to be a little more patient." Kei said cheerfully. "Yoh and Silva are doing their best to help us. It's not their fault that Hao made so many enemies."

"Perhaps, but I do wish they'd hurry it up!" Kiyoko replied impatiently. "I don't like all this hiding out."

"Did you not do any hiding while you were a rebel?" Kei asked.

"Well, between raids and attacks, yes." Kiyoko admitted. "But all we're doing is hiding!"

"You could go out and about." Kei informed her. "No one's looking to kill you."

"Yes, but they'd ask questions, and I don't like being away from you, not knowing that there are those that mean you harm around here." Kiyoko responded stubbornly. Kei was about to reply when Kiyoko held out a hand, warning him to be silent. Her head turned this way and that, listening. "I think someone's coming." She warned in a whisper. Kei nodded and prepared to melt into the forest.

Before he could hide though, a few men and women dressed all in white crashed into the clearing where they were standing. Their leader, a tall man with blonde hair and glasses that reflected the sunlight, hiding his eyes, stiffened at the sight of Kei. Kei tensed up as well, not liking the feeling he was getting right now.

"Hao!" The man snarled, pulling a pistol from his holster.

"No, I'm not-" Kei couldn't get any more out before the man shot at him. But what emerged from the gun was not a bullet, but a massive, metallic-looking creature that almost looked like an angel. He dove out of the way, but the thing sliced his shoulder, drawing blood. Kei didn't wait for it to come back, he just scrambled to his feet and ran into the forest, not daring to look back.

%&%&%&%

Yoh, his family and his friends were enjoying a late lunch, chatting and joking around amiably. All his family was there, plus Anna, Ren, Horohoro, Manta, Ryu and Faust, though Faust had retired early for a nap; his old injuries were causing some trouble. Yoh listened to Horohoro and Ren argue about something random, thinking it would be nice if Kei could start talking to them too.

All of the sudden the back door slammed open and then closed again. Yoh got up, frowning slightly, along with everyone else at the table. He could hear rapid, gasped breathing coming from the living room where the back door led into. He turned the corner and gasped in surprise at the sight of Kei leaning against the corner, hand clasping a shoulder that was slowly dripping blood.

"Oh my god!" He yelped. His grandfather spotted Kei and his reaction was very different. He roared in rage and summoned his leaf sprites, who slammed Kei into the wall, pinning him. "No!" Yoh cried, and Yohmei suddenly found Kiyoko's blade against his throat.

"Release him." She hissed, her eyes like chips of ice. "I have killed before, it's not hard. If you do not release him, you will die."

"Grandfather, it's ok." Yoh said in a placating tone. "Just listen to her." Yohmei stubbornly glared up at Kiyoko, who pressed the blade a little more firmly to his throat. "He's not who you think he is." Finally Yohmei did as he was asked, out of self-preservation.

Kei slid down as he was released, kneeling on the floor, clutching at his shoulder with his teeth gritted. Yoh knelt beside him and helped him to his feet. "What are you doing Yoh?" Horohoro asked in a nervous voice. Yoh turned to them, turning Kei so that he was facing them.

"Everyone, this is Kei." He said. They all stared at him, uncomprehendingly. "Kei remembers only his life up to a little more than a year ago." He explained. Looks of understanding were dawning in his mother's, grandmother's and Ren's eyes. Horohoro, Ryu and Manta still looked lost, he couldn't tell how his father was feeling and Yohmei just looked angry.

"But that's-"

"Kei." Yoh said firmly, cutting Horohoro off. "I know who he looks like, but it's not him." Kei gazed back at the various faces, his brow scrunched up with worry. "Why doesn't someone get Faust, he's hurt, see?"

Manta scurried out of the room to go find Faust and Yoh helped Kei into the kitchen and into one of the chairs there at the table. Yoh's friends and family followed after, still staring at Kei. Kei's eyes flitted away from all of them and he looked down at his shoes. After a moment Yoh heard him sniff loudly.

"What happened, Kei?" Yoh asked gently. Kei sniffled again and wiped at his nose.

"I was just walking in the forest and all the sudden these guys in white uniforms came out. The guy in the lead shot at me, only it was like this big mechanic angel popped out and sliced my shoulder open. I didn't know where else to go, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come here." The last couple words came out as a sob. Horohoro and Ryu's faces softened somewhat at the sound.

"No, it's ok, Kei." Yoh soothed, wrapping his arm around Kei's narrow shoulders. Kei leaned into the touch, hiccupping softly. Faust came down then and stared for a moment.

"Faust, this is Kei. Kei, this is Doctor Faust." Faust stared into dark, worried, tearful eyes and simply nodded his head. "Kei's shoulder's hurt."

"Well, let me see then." Faust pulled the blood-stained shirt off of Kei and inspected the wound. He clucked softly. "Looks like you'll need some stitches. I'll have to numb the area, is that alright?"

"I'm used to needles." Kei replied with a painful shrug. Faust nodded his head, already spotting the large scar that dominated his torso.

"Where did you get that scar, Kei?" He asked, knowing full well where he'd gotten it from.

"I don't remember." Kei murmured as he watched the needle slip into his skin. Faust flicked the area, satisfied that it was doing its job and then began the task of sewing up Kei's wounds. "You look like a Dr. Frankenstein kind of doctor, if you don't mind me saying."

"I do dabble in necromancy." Faust replied with a whispery chuckle. Kei's eyes widened.

"You can do that?" He asked. Faust nodded. "Cool."

"I'm glad you think so." Faust chuckled. He finished his job and inspected it. "There, good as new."

"Why don't you go lie down for awhile Kei, I can show you to a room." Yoh offered. Kei nodded and stood up, following his brother out the door. Yoh led him up to his room and waited for him to settle in.

"You're not going to get in trouble because of me, are you?" Kei asked as he settled into a comfortable position.

"I probably will be in trouble, but it's not your fault, ok?" Kei gave him an unconvinced look.

"Ok.." He sighed and then closed his eyes. Yoh walked out and closed the door quietly before heading downstairs to face the music.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	13. Chapter 13

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh walked slowly back down and was immediately yelled at by his grandfather. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PLAYING AT?"

"Keep it down, you're going to scare him." Yoh hissed. "I told you, his name is Kei and he doesn't remember anything beyond about a year ago."

"He doesn't remember being Hao, basically." Ren affirmed. Yoh nodded his head.

"He has nightmares of fire and rage, but that's the extent of what he can remember." He explained.

"How'd he get here if he doesn't remember this place?" Manta asked.

"He had the oracle pager, his obaa-san had kept it, and it had given him a map to this place. He came looking for answers, but he's not sure he wants them anymore." Yoh told them.

"Why doesn't he go home then?" Anna demanded. "We don't want him here."

"Anna, that's not kind, and he's got nowhere to go. His obaa-san, his only family, died before he came here." Yoh said quietly. "If I abandon him, he's got no one left to help him, he can't defend himself against the X-Laws or anyone else."

"Hao would have never allowed himself to get such wounds. He had the ability to heal himself, it was not necessary." Faust said. "The head wound could have caused brain damage, it's not that difficult."

"He could be faking it." Yohmei grumbled.

"Hush, old man." Kino admonished. "Hao's too prideful to go around pretending he's some green amnesiac."

"That's very true." Mikihisa said thoughtfully. "There's a gentleness to his face that Hao never had. It makes him look more like Yoh than ever."

"I don't believe this, you're actually going to ignore the things that he's done!"

"But it wasn't Kei who did them." Horohoro countered. "Why should we punish Kei for something Hao did."

"They're not two separate people."

"But they are." Keiko interrupted. "Kei is a different person, with a different personality and different memories than Hao. They are different people and should be treated as such. To treat him as you would Hao would only confuse and frighten the poor boy." Yohmei snorted, but argued no more.

"He needs to stay here now, I don't want him on his own now that the X-Laws know he's around." Yoh declared.

"And by now the rest of the shamans have probably heard as well." Ren murmured. "How long are you planning to keep him in the dark, Yoh?"

"Until I have a weapon for him, his spirit is a female samurai, she needs a sword to be most effective." Yoh explained.

"A female samurai, how is that possible?" Manta squeaked.

"She worked hard, disguised herself as a boy, that's how. Her name is Kiyoko and she's very protective of Kei, as you've already seen." Yoh said with a pointed look at his grandfather. "We should summon Mosuke, he's the best swordsmith there is."

"Well, I won't do it. I won't go arming that monster." Anna snapped. "He'll just turn around and destroy us all once he's got you all fooled, you mark my words."

"That's enough, Anna!" Kino growled. "If you won't do it, then I will."

"Thank you, obaa-san." Yoh smiled at her. Her blind eyes turned to the sound of his voice and she smiled in reply.

"I always thought you had the most sense of the males in this family."

%&%&%&%

Kei woke up feeling disoriented and sore. After a moment of lying still he remembered what had happened and bolted upright. He all but ran down the stairs, only to be encountered by Yoh's friends and family staring at them as they sat down to dinner.

"Come sit, Kei." Yoh offered, patting the seat next to him.

"I should really go." Kei replied anxiously, twisting the hem of his shirt in his hands.

"Where are you going to go? All of the shamanic population will be looking for you." Ren informed him. "You don't have any way of fighting back against the people who want to hurt you, and believe me, these people will not want to talk before they try to shoot."

"I know." Kei muttered, rubbing at his sore shoulder and hanging his head. He padded over to Yoh's side and plunked down, pulling his long hair away from his face. He noticed that most of the gazes went to his forehead as he did so. Unconsciously he touched the jagged scar.

"Kei, I don't think I introduced all of these guys." Yoh said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "These are my friends Ren, Horohoro, Ryu, Manta and you already know Faust. Plus my mother, father, grandmother and grandfather. Oh, and Anna too, she's my fiancé." Kei gave him a look like he was crazy. "It was arranged."

"Like I'd be seen dead with this deadbeat anyways." Anna grumbled.

"If they're your family, does that mean they're my family as well?" Kei asked tentatively.

"Yes, Kei, we're your family." Keiko said gently. Kei smiled shyly at her.

"I'm no family of his." Yohmei hissed.

"Ignore the old codger, he's like an old dog who can't learn new tricks." Kino grumbled. "You're family, and it's time we started treating you as such, teaching you our ways. First and foremost we need to get you a weapon. I'll summon Mosuke later for such a task."

"Can you really do that? Seems like a great task for an old woman." Kiyoko stated. Kino turned sightless eyes in her direction.

"I've enough power in these old bones to chuck you into the afterlife, so don't you be questioning me, missy." Kiyoko stared at her a moment before letting out a deep guffaw.

"I like you, bet you would have done well in our rebel army." She told Kino. Kino cracked a small smile at this.

As everyone was settling down and starting to chat a little more with Kei, the front door burst open. "You won't believe what I've just heard!" Lyserg's voice boomed out. "I was in the village and some of the X-Laws came through saying that..." Lyserg trailed off as he came in the room, spotting Kei almost immediately. His mouth worked soundlessly for a couple seconds before he moved, starting to back up.

Horohoro and Ren were faster, up on their feet and grabbing one of Lyserg's arms each, pinning him in place. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Lyserg screamed at them. "LET ME GO! WHAT IS HE DOING HERE?"

Yoh got up, pulling Kei with him, who was trying to edge away nervously. "Lyserg, calm down." Yoh said in his gentle, soothing way.

"Calm down, you've got your arm around the man that killed my parents!" Lyserg spat. Kei recoiled from the hate stamped across Lyserg's face, eyes wide and fearful.

"I'm serious, Lyserg, calm down, and I will explain what's going on." Yoh repeated. Lyserg panted heavily, struggling against Ren and Horohoro's hold. Eventually he stopped and sagged in their arms, still glaring at Yoh and Kei.

"What exactly do you have to say for yourself?" He snarled. Yoh drew Kei slightly forward, despite Kei trying to back up away from the angry boy.

"Lyserg, this is Kei." Yoh introduced. Lyserg stared blankly for a moment before his expression turned bewildered.

"What?"

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Wolf: Review plz!


	14. Chapter 14

Wolf: I own nothing!

Lyserg stared at Yoh. "Have you gone crazy?" He demanded.

"No, this is Kei. He woke up in a hospital a year ago with no memory." Yoh explained. "He came here looking for answers."

"I don't really want to know the answers anymore though." Kei said quietly, shaking his head. "I don't want to know about Hao if he was bad."

"This isn't some kind of trick, is it?" Lyserg asked suspiciously.

"Look at him, Lyserg." Yoh urged. "What do you see?"

Lyserg peered at Kei, his eyes still narrowed in anger. Kei shifted under his gaze and looked away, but Lyserg had seen the worry and the fear in his eyes before he did so. He took into account the clothes, so normal and the way Kei leaned into Yoh, as though for support. The more he looked, the less Kei looked like Hao to him.

"Okay, maybe you're not crazy." He said grudgingly. Yoh nodded and Ren and Horohoro released Lyserg. Lyserg took a step forward and Kei tried to take a step back.

"It's ok, he's a friend." Yoh assured him. Kei gave him a dubious look, but stayed in place as Lyserg edged closer.

"You don't know me at all?" Lyserg asked Kei. Kei shook his head, peeking up at Lyserg through his bangs. Lyserg stared at him for a moment without saying anything.

"He doesn't act like Hao, and Hao was too proud to ever act like that for any reason." He reasoned. "And Hao never ever looked scared of anything, certainly not me."

"Kei's been having a rough day." Yoh said, squeezing Kei's shoulder. "He got cut open and chased through the forest and he doesn't understand why. It's no wonder he's a little freaked out."

"Yeah, that would be a little scary, now wouldn't it?" Lyserg agreed. He stared at Kei a moment more before sticking out his hand. Kei stared at the hand a moment before hesitantly shaking it. "I'm Lyserg, sorry about that."

"It's ok, from what I'm starting to understand, Hao did a lot of bad things." Kei murmured in reply. "Please, don't tell me more about him, I don't want to know."

"Why not? Wouldn't it be better to understand why people react the way they do to you?" Lyserg asked.

"I'm afraid." Kei whispered. "Afraid that if I hear too much I'll remember and become Hao again, and I don't want to be Hao." Yoh patted his back in a comforting way.

"Don't worry, we're not about to let anything bad happen to you."

%&%&%&%&%

Silva came over later and found, to his relief, that Kei was ok. He said there was a blacksmith shop in the town, but cautioned them to wait until night to go anywhere with Kei. Kei's eyes didn't quite lose their worried look and he was restless all evening, pacing and jumping at shadows, despite Yoh and Kiyoko's frequent assurances. Lyserg had not stayed long, but had promised to tell no one about Kei.

"Think it's about time, don't you?" Kino commented after the sun had been down for a little while.

"Yeah, I think we should be good." Yoh said, nodding his head. Kino bowed her head and began to chant, summoning the spirit of Mosuke from the great beyond. The burly man scowled when he realized where he was, scratching at his tangled mane of short brown hair.

"Amidamaru, did you break my sword again?" He demanded, dark eyes glinting dangerously.

"I haven't done anything to your sword!" Amidamaru snapped in reply. The two of them glared at each other for a moment before grinning and clasping hands. "We do need your expertise though. We need a sword made."

"For whom?" Mosuke asked in surprise. Kei stepped forward and Mosuke eyed him. He'd never had an encounter with Hao before, so he didn't know Kei as anything else but what he was now. "And what's your name?"

"I'm Kei. My friend Kiyoko has a sword like the one we want made for us, if you'd like to see it." Kei said politely. Kiyoko appeared and Mosuke's eyebrows rose into his hairline.

"Well I never, a female samurai, what strangeness." Kiyoko held out her sword to him shyly. He took it and felt it over, feeling its weight and running his hands over the steel. "I've never seen anything like this." He said in a tone of respect. "Whoever forged this sword might not have been as good as I, but they were pretty close."

"So, can you make it?" Kiyoko asked. Mosuke bristled slightly.

"I'm the best swordsmith the world's ever seen, of course I can." He pointed at Kei. "You're going to be the one to help me."

"Me?" Kei squeaked. "Why me?"

"It's going to be your sword, you should be the one who crafts it." Mosuke explained gently. "You've got a strong body, you'll be able to do it with me guiding you."

"Okay." Kei still looked doubtful but he followed the rest of them through the dark streets to the blacksmith. As soon as they were in sight, Mosuke merged with Kei. It went easily and when Kei opened his eyes, it was Mosuke looking out of them.

"Hmm." He said, flexing his hands. "This one's a lot like Yoh. Very calm and didn't fight me. We'll get along fine." He wandered over to the blacksmith shop and put on a heavy leather apron. "Now, let's see what we have to work with here." He looked at the various steel pieces he had to work with and began to select what he wanted, mumbling to himself the whole while.

Yoh and his friends set up a perimeter to make sure no one going on a late night stroll would interrupt Kei and Mosuke. Soon the ringing sound of steel being struck sang out into the night as Mosuke worked. Kei's body was coated in a fine sheen of sweat as Mosuke worked, heating the metal, beating it into shape and cooling it repeatedly.

It was a long time being done, and Horohoro and Yoh were starting to drowse off by the time the noise and heat from the shop were finished. "It's done!" Mosuke cried in Kei's voice. Yoh and the others ambled over to see. Kei held up the sword as Mosuke released him. "What do you think?" Mosuke asked him with pride in his voice.

Kei swung the sword in an arc, handling it almost effortlessly. "It's lighter than I thought it would be, being so big."

"Trick of the trade." Mosuke explained, beaming.

"Feels like it's a part of my arm."

"You made it yourself, that makes it an extension of yourself in my opinion." Mosuke stated. "It's a good sword, it will serve you well if you treat it right."

"I will." Kei promised. He then bowed to Mosuke, who bowed back and vanished, heading back to his peaceful afterlife. Amidamaru sighed as he went, but smiled at Yoh's concerned look.

"I miss having him around, but I've got a more interesting afterlife than he does and I wouldn't trade that for anything."

"Thanks Amidamaru." Yoh chuckled. "What do you think of the sword, Kiyoko?"

"I think it's even better than mine, and I am jealous." Kiyoko replied, eyes dancing with glee. "I may have to steal it from you, Kei."

"Just you try." Kei retorted playfully, jokingly trying to hide the sword behind his back.

"Come on you two, let's go home, it's late." Kei nodded and jogged to catch up to the others. All the way back to the house Kei was swishing the sword back and forth, a captivated look on his face.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	15. Chapter 15

Wolf: I own nothing!

It was about three o'clock when Yoh's subconscious woke him up with the knowledge that there was someone else in the room with him. He sat up quickly, making Kei back away just as quickly, the familiar worried look on his face. Yoh blinked at him, his tired brain trying to make sense of the fact that Kei was in his room.

"What're you doing in here, Kei?" he asked, his voice rough with sleep.

"I couldn't sleep." Kei whispered in reply. "I'm too nervous."

"Nervous of what?"

"Your, our, grandfather doesn't like me. I think he wants me gone." Kei confided.

"He doesn't like you, but I won't let him do anything to you."

"Yeah, you're the only one that I trust in this house. I know the others you said are ok, but I don't know them, I know you, and I trust you." Kei explained quickly. "I just feel safer when I'm around you." Yoh realized then what Kei was trying to ask in such a roundabout way.

"Would you like to sleep here for the night?" He asked his brother. Kei gave him a hopeful look and nodded solemnly. "Come on then." Yoh invited, lifting up the blanket. Kei gratefully slid under and wrapped one arm casually around Yoh's body, hugging him almost like a teddy bear. Yoh figured that Kei used to do this with his obaa-san when he'd needed some comfort in the middle of the night.

He was awake long after Kei's breathing grew soft and deep and the arm around him relaxed. There was so much that needed to be done. He needed to teach Kei, and also try and keep him hidden from the rest of the shamans for as long as possible. Then there was the Shaman fights, which were still being sorted out, but when they started, would Kei fight, would he be able to?

So many questions and so little answers, it was all very worrisome. Though, with a very real brother, one that looked on him as a brother and not just a thing to be used at his leisure, he found he didn't so much mind the worries. He patted Kei on the head, inciting a sleepy grumble and allowed his mind to go blank, drifting off to sleep moments later.

%&%&%&%

"YOH!" Kei jerked upright at the screech somewhere above him. Thinking they were under attack he tried to stand up, but fell over Yoh's body. He stared upwards from his prone position and found Anna glaring down at him.

"I'm awake Anna." Yoh said sleepily from beneath him.

"Good, you need to do your training." She snapped at him and then left, slamming the door behind her. Kei got up, allowing Yoh out from underneath him, giving him a sheepish look.

"Sorry, I guess I'm a little jumpy."

"I would be too, in your situation." Yoh chuckled. "I have to go and do my run, the route runs through town, so you'd better stay here." Kei's heart stuttered a beat.

"But-"

"You'll be fine." Yoh said in a soothing tone that instantly made Kei relax. "My friends won't do anything to hurt you, and they'll defend you if anyone does try to hurt you."

"Okay." Kei said, though he still felt uncertain about the whole business. Yoh seemed to sense this and gave him a smile and a hug before getting on some clothes and heading out the door.

"I'll be here to protect you too, don't forget." Kiyoko said, appearing before him, her pale eyes steady and stern. "Nobody messes with you when I'm around."

"Unless they want trouble." Kei finished for her, smiling up at her. She cracked a thin smile at that.

"Right." Kei wandered quietly back to the room that was his, pulled off the yukata that Yoh had lent him and then pulled on the clothes that Yoh had lent him. The perfect fit of the borrowed clothes unnerved him a little, though he knew that he and Yoh were twins; it was so strange to know there was someone else with his exact body and face out there. Well, not the exact same face, he thought, touching the scar on his forehead.

He walked down the stairs slowly, reluctantly, not at all sure he wanted to sit in the same room as people who would just stare and stare at him, trying not to see Hao. However when he entered the kitchen, Horohoro offered him a huge grin as he worked the stove.

"Well, here's Kei, maybe he can settle a debate." He said, gesturing with both hands for Kei to come in. Ren and Ryu were there as well. "You read a lot of books, right?"

"Yeah, I love books." Kei replied, somewhat cautiously.

"You read the Harry Potter books?" Kei nodded his head. "Wasn't it obvious in a lot of the early books that Hermione and Ron would be together?"

"Yeah, you could see it very clearly." Kei answered. Horohoro turned and pointed at Ryu.

"See, see I told you it was as obvious in the books as they made it in the movies."

"I haven't really read the books, I thought it was just Hollywood playing it up." Ryu shrugged. "You can't say they don't do that."

"True, true." Horohoro agreed. Their talk turned to movies and books that were made into movies and Kei found himself relaxing in their company. He didn't really have any close friends, besides Kiyoko. It was difficult to find friends your age when you were just learning to tie your shoes or read complicated novels. But right here and now he felt accepted and he liked the feeling.

When Yoh came back he simply stood in the doorway for a couple minutes, unseen, and watched with a happy grin on his face. He just knew that Kei would get along with the others, and here was the proof. When Ren turned and finally saw him he went in, accepting the hug that Kei bestowed upon him and joined the conversation eagerly.

Keiko came down a few minutes later and watched them for a moment, staring in particular at Kei. Kei felt her stare and half-turned to look at her, and then looked away, unsure of himself. Keiko smiled to herself and walked up behind him quietly, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Good morning, Kei." She said to him when he turned to her again. His grave dark eyes stared at her a moment without blinking, reminding her of a much younger Yoh. They were the eyes of a child still, with their strange wisdom and their feeling that the whole universe was hidden in their souls.

"Good morning." He answered shyly, shattering the clarity of the moment. She reached out and tucked an errant lock of hair behind his ear before touching his cheek lightly with her fingertips. His eyes stared into hers unwaveringly and she into his. They didn't speak a word to each other, but Kei suddenly reached out his arms to her and wrapped them around her middle, pressing his cheek to her chest.

"My son." She whispered lovingly, cupping the back of his head in her one hand.

"Kaa-san." He sighed in reply. Yoh and his friends remained silent, sensing the sanctity of the scene before them, a mother reunited with her child. Keiko was weeping silently and though they could not see his face, they heard Kei let out a watery little sound that could have been a sob.

When they parted from their embrace, there were indeed wet trails running down Kei's cheeks. Keiko cupped his face in both hands, wiping away the streaks with her fingers and kissed his forehead. She then turned to Yoh and hugged him, kissing the top of his head; that done, she left the room and headed back upstairs, leaving all of them in various states of awe.

Kei turned to look at them all, a delighted grin lighting up his face. "I have a mother." He proclaimed happily.

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Wolf: Ok, so this is the last update until probably sometime next weekend. Reason being, my parents are carting all my stuff up to Ottawa, since they have to go that way anyways, this weekend to my apartment. Since I want to work as long as I can before school starts, I'm not heading up myself until next Thursday, and on the bus. Since it's a long trip and I want my bag to be as light as possible for the journey, I have elected to allow my parents to bring my laptop with them when they leave, so, I will not be able to update until I get back to my apartment.


	16. Chapter 16

Wolf: I own nothing!

Kei walked in a happy daze for most of the rest of the morning. Yoh and his friends watched him with bemusement; it was odd watching someone who up until recently was one of the most intimidating men in the world act so naive and childish. The more they watched Kei, talked to him and hung around him, the harder it became to remember who he once was.

"Come on Kei, we're going to go start teaching you to use that sword of yours properly." Yoh announced after lunch. Kei looked up at him from doing the dishes, Anna having decided that he was going to pull his own weight.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Yeah, we need to get started with this as soon as possible." Horohoro explained. "You don't want to meet the X-Laws without knowing how to fight back." Kei shuddered in reply.

"We'll go out in the forest, it's unlikely that they'll run into us there." Ren added. "And if they do, we'll be around to help you."

"So, you're all coming too?" Kei asked.

"Yeah, it's best you learn to fight against different styles and spirit guardians." Yoh said. Kei nodded at the logic and looked up as Lyserg stepped in. "Hey, Lyserg, what's up?"

"I wanted to see how Kei was doing." Lyserg said hesitantly.

"I'm doing fine." Kei answered. "The X-Laws haven't found me."

"No, if they had they would have been bragging about it." Lyserg chuckled. "And maybe dragging you through the streets tied up and humiliated." Kei grimaced at the thought. "I'm ashamed to say I was once a part of their insanity."

"Why?"

"I wanted revenge, and they had the power and the drive to help me get it." Lyserg explained carefully, not wanting to reveal too much, or upset Kei. He was a gentle soul, and after much thinking, Lyserg had come to the conclusion that he didn't want his parents' deaths weighing on Kei's soul.

"We're going out and training Kei with his new sword, do you want to help?" Yoh asked.

"Kei got a sword?"

"Yeah, I made it with Mosuke's help last night." Kei said with a pleased grin. "It's really cool looking."

"Hopefully he can use it." Ren muttered. "Otherwise we're all doomed."

"I'll come, I want to avoid Marco as it is. He's been trying to get me to go back with them." Lyserg made a face that made the rest of them chuckle slightly. They headed out, first checking outside to make sure they weren't going to walk into a trap and then creating a sort of shield around Kei to protect him in case they did still run into someone they didn't want to.

They came to a large clearing deep within the forest, a place that Yoh had found in the first round of the tournament and had used for meditating and practice purposes. It would now become Kei's training arena. Kei walked around it ponderously, sword in hand. The troubled look had returned.

"What's wrong, Kei?" Yoh asked him.

"Are you sure we should start like this, I mean I could hurt one of you." Kei replied. Ren scoffed.

"You're not trying to hurt us, and we've been able to dodge people who've tried to kill us." He informed Kei. "We can handle ourselves."

"If you're sure..." Kei said sceptically.

"This is the best way you will learn to defend yourself." Yoh added gently. "You won't hurt us, and I think some of us are actually worried about hurting you." Horohoro nodded in agreement. "Our first task is getting you used to fighting with your weapon. We won't use Oversouls or Spirit Integration at all for the first little while until we think you're ready for it."

Kei nodded his head and lifted his weapon, taking a fighting stance. Yoh smiled and took out Harusame, touching the blade to Kei's. They stood like that for a moment before Yoh moved and Kei blocked him. The two of them danced around each other, looking for a spot to strike, neither of them wanting to give any ground at all.

"Excellent, excellent." Yoh panted, backing off after a long while. "How do you feel?"

"Good, the sword feels good in my hand." Kei gasped out in reply. "I think I need a rest."

"We should work on endurance as well, you'll need it." Ren told him. Kei nodded his head, unable to speak through his desperate gasps for air. Yoh produced a water bottle and took a swig before handing it to Kei, who drank from it eagerly. "I think I'll have a go at Kei next." Ren said, lifting his Kwan Dao. Kei sighed and got up, lifting his sword.

He was harder pressed to keep Ren back. The Chinese boy was a little more vicious than Yoh was and got a whole lot more near misses. Kei was panting even more harshly by the time Ren backed off from him. "I wouldn't like to have you as an enemy, Ren." Kei commented, checking himself over just to make sure that he hadn't actually been hit.

"Yoh was able to defeat me, and that was back when he was just starting out fighting." Ren informed him. "It's not just about whether you can fight, it's whether you can think on your feet in order to take down your opponent. You have to be smart to get far in this, and from what I've seen, you are pretty damned smart for someone who's had to relearn everything for the past year."

"Thank you, that was an... interesting pep talk." Kei gave Ren an odd look. He'd already figured out that Ren was the stoic, often pessimistic and cynical member of the group and the little inspirational speech just seemed so out of character that Kei and the rest of them were a little taken aback.

"Wow, Ren, did someone slip an upper into your breakfast?" Horohoro joked.

"Shut it, idiot!" Ren snapped, levelling his Kwan Dao at Horohoro's face.

"Ahh, there's the Ren we all know and love." Horohoro cackled. "You thinking you want to do anymore today, Kei?"

"I can keep going." Kei insisted. "Who wants to go next?"

%&%&%&%

"Alright, I think it's time to call it quits." Yoh called as Ren and Kei whirled around each other. The two of them stopped and stared at each other, panting heavily and sweating.

"We can keep going." Kei insisted.

"I'd rather not have you die of heat stroke or something while we're teaching you to fight to keep you alive, you know?" Yoh said. "Besides, I have my own training to get to and Anna will only give me double if I don't get it done."

"That girl is trying to kill you." Kei stated. "Her voice is bad enough, it's like the Nazgul from Lord of the Rings, scares the heck out of you."

"Yeah, just don't say that to her face, she'll give you the smack of your life." Horohoro snickered. Kei laughed and wiped sweat off his face with his sleeve.

"I'll see you guys later." Lyserg said, wandering off into the forest.

"See you!" Yoh called. "Come on, guys, let's go home."

The four of them, with their spirit guardians, walked through the woods, chatting amiably.

"So, Kei..." Kei turned his head to look at Yoh. "What were you planning on naming your weapon?"

"Naming it?" Kei asked with a confused frown.

"All swords have to have a name." Yoh explained. "Mine is Harusame, there was Excalibur fro King Arthur..."

"And Anduril for Aragorn." Kei added. "Okay, I think I get it." He looked at the sword, cocking his head critically at it as he walked. The rest of them said nothing, just allowing him to think it out. "Protego."

"Protego, why that?" Horohoro asked.

"In Harry Potter, Protego is the shield spell." Kei explained. "This sword is my shield against being killed, so it should have a name that reflects it."

"I think it makes sense." Yoh said, nodding. Horohoro just laughed.

"You must really love Harry Potter."

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Wolf: Review plz!


	17. Chapter 17

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh was washing dishes in the kitchen, keeping one ear on the conversation in the living room, where Kei was amazing the others with his knowledge on books. He smiled to himself as he heard the sound of Kei's childish, joyous laugh. He loved Kei's delight at having friends, and family again and he loved the way his face lit up when someone he cared about walked in the room.

"He really isn't Hao anymore, is he?" Yoh half-turned to look at his father and shook his head. "It's hard to let go of the mentality hammered into you, though it's also hard to see Hao in the way Kei acts."

"I've noticed you sort of have been avoiding Kei." Yoh commented.

"I've been battling between what I see and what I've been taught. I didn't want to accidently say something hurtful because my brain and my mouth got disconnected." Mikihisa admitted. "He seems like good kid though, and he's wicked fast with that sword of his."

"Oh, you've been watching us practice with him?" Yoh grinned. "Later today we're going to teach him how to form an Oversoul."

"I'll have to watch that." Mikihisa said.

"Yoh? You're still doing dishes?" Kei poked his head into the kitchen, grinning cheekily. "Boy, you're slow at that."

"I'll be done in a couple minutes, Kei." Yoh laughed. He wasn't sure whether to refer to Kei as aniki or otouto, because technically Kei was older than him, but it was Yoh who acted as the older brother in their relationship. Kei nodded his head and looked at Mikihisa for a long moment, his dark eyes solemn.

"How come you wear that mask?" He asked curiously, if not a little shyly. Mikihisa touched the mask lightly.

"I have burn scars on my face." He explained. Kei's brows drew together.

"Were they from Hao?" He asked. Mikihisa was silent for a long moment before nodding. "I'm sorry." Mikihisa looked down at him, face unreadable beneath his mask. Slowly he reached out one hand and rested it on top of Kei's head. Kei gazed up at him nervously and hopefully.

"It's not your fault, there's nothing for you to be sorry for, my son." He told him. Kei gave him a happy smile and moved forward to embrace him. Mikihisa stiffened and patted Kei's head awkwardly before easing out of his grip and leaving the kitchen.

"Don't take it personally, Kei, he's not too big on affectionate displays." Yoh told Kei when he started to look sad.

"I guess the father isn't really supposed to be the outwardly affectionate one, though, is he?"

"Well, stereotypically not, but there are very affectionate fathers out there." Yoh replied.

"Kaa-san likes getting hugs at least." Kei shrugged. "And you do too, so I'm happy. At least he's not acting like our grandfather."

"Grandfather is very set in his ways, I'm afraid." Yoh sighed. "He's also extremely stubborn."

"I know, he refuses to even reply when I say good morning to him." Kei sighed as well. "I guess you can't win them all, right?"

"Right." Yoh said with a smile.

"It occurs to me though, if Hao did so many bad things, and I look like him, why do all these people now trust me?" Kei asked.

"Your manner is a lot different than Hao's was, and people are taken aback, and they think before they act... well, most of the time." Yoh amended, watching as Kei made a face. "But when people see you acting the way they do, it confuses them and makes them more willing to listen. Plus, you're such a friendly, pleasant person that people can't help but like you once they know you."

"So, I have a magnetic personality?" Kei asked.

"Yeah, something like that." Yoh agreed. "The point is people see that you're a nice guy and they start to like you, simple as that."

"if you say so." Kei shrugged.

"Alright, I'm done here."

"Are we going to go then?" Kei asked eagerly. Yoh chuckled.

"Yes, we're going." He confirmed. Kei grinned and shot up the stairs, looking for his sword. Yoh followed after a little slower, going to get Harusame. Ren and Horohoro saw him go and went to find their own weapons.

%&%&%&%

Kei proved to be a quick learner and developed an Oversoul similar to Yoh's own, prompting everyone to start making jokes about twin telepathy and things like that. Kei was thrilled by his success and pleaded with Yoh to stay with him a little longer to play with his Oversoul more after everyone else had left.

"Do you think I'll be able to start going out in public soon?" Kei asked.

"Hopefully, I mean they're getting close to sorting things out, so the tournament will be starting up again." Yoh chuckled at Kei's questioning look. "A bunch of teams that lost members brought new shamans in and the officials have been having to make sure they are 'worthy' of being here."

"Oh, ok, I understand." Kei said. "Should we go?"

"Yeah, let's go home." Yoh said, slinging an arm around Kei's shoulders. They turned and then halted in their tracks.

"Well, well, what have we here?" Marco smirked at them, his eyes glinting from behind his glasses. The Iron Maiden said nothing, but her eyes bored into Kei, who swallowed and slid behind Yoh. Yoh stepped forward, keeping himself between Kei and the X-Laws. "Step aside, Asakura, unless you want to die along with the monster."

"He's not who you think he is." Yoh stated firmly. "His name is Kei, he's not Hao."

"What are you talking about?" Marco hissed.

"He can't remember anything beyond last year." Yoh explained. "He woke up in a hospital and had to relearn everything. He came here looking for answers on who he was, but now he doesn't want to know anymore. He's not Hao, and I'm not going to let you hurt him."

"So what you're saying is that he's not really Hao at all?" The Iron Maiden asked.

"Yeah, that's right, I mean, look at him." Yoh moved aside slightly, making Kei gasp and move behind him again. "You're scaring him."

Marco looked to Lady Jeanne. "Hao must be punished, but it must be Hao who is punished." She said softly. "We will restore Hao, Marco, and then he will be punished."

"What?" Kei squeaked, his eyes wide with fear. "No, I don't want to be Hao, I want to be me, please no!" Yoh slowly began to back off, keeping Harusame out in front of him.

"Get ready to run when I say." Yoh murmured. He didn't get the opportunity though, because at once Michael the Archangel was launched at him and he had to defend himself. At the same time Shamash flew at Kei and pinned him to the ground, painfully if the cry from Kei was any indication. Kiyoko tried to attack the Babylonian spirit, but he fended her off easily.

Marco stood in Yoh's way, not that it was necessary, Yoh's concentration was taken up by Michael's attacks. He could still see Kei struggling though and with the sharp clarity that battle-fuelled adrenaline always brought he could see tears of terror on Kei's face. He could hear him pleading as the Iron Maiden glided over and placed a hand on his forehead.

"NO!" He roared, dodging around Michael and frantically ran for his brother. A great force slammed into his chest and he was suddenly flying backwards, his journey only halted by the trunk of a nearby tree. As he gasped for air he realized that he'd been struck by Michael, and that the burning pain in his torso meant that he was cut, several ribs were definitely broken, and judging by the way his throat was filling with blood, one of them had pierced a lung.

Michael stood over him and lowered its blade for the killing blow. A furious roar rent the air as the blade whistled downwards and Michael suddenly had a large blade protruding from its chest. The blade sliced upwards and the Oversoul of Michael disappeared. The light made Yoh scrunch his eyes shut but he felt an arm grab around his middle, forcing out a bubbly grunt of pain.

The flip-flop of his stomach meant he was airborne and he opened his eyes, feeling his consciousness beginning to dim as he was laid across someone's lap. Sharp, worried, solemn, cynical black eyes stared down at him. Yoh managed to smile slightly, feeling blood trickle from the corner of his lips down the side of his cheek as he did so.

"Hi, Hao." He choked out and then promptly blacked out.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	18. Chapter 18

Wolf: I own nothing!

Hao watched Yoh's eyes roll back into his head and felt his body go slack in his arms. He couldn't move though, couldn't think of what to do. His mind was churning furiously, trying to figure out if he was Kei or Hao or some strange mix of both. The part of him that seemed to be Kei was screaming to get Yoh help, and the part that he considered his old self was telling him just to let the stupid boy die, he could not be used, what did he need to live for?

"Kei?" Kiyoko's voice floated up to him. He'd used her to create an Oversoul, basically a giant version of her with red, hawk-like wings so that she could fly. Her voice snapped him out of his daze and into action. He placed his hands on Yoh's chest and healed the punctured lung and his ribs, leaving the rest.

"Set us down by the clinic." He directed Kiyoko in a toneless voice. She turned her head slightly, her light eyes staring at him in mild surprise, but she did as he asked, setting them down in the forest near the clinic. Hao hopped down, Yoh's body in his arms and exhaled slowly. This was going to require some acting on his part. "Find the others, tell them what happened."

"You're not Kei anymore, are you?" Kiyoko said, her Oversoul form disappearing and her normal spirit form returning. Hao stared at her a long moment, unsure how to answer.

"I need to get him inside." He said instead and turned his back on her, trudging through the doors. He took a deep breath and then yelled "I need help!" The panic in his voice was not all faked, it was still in his head; the part he considered Kei.

A nurse came running and stopped short when she saw him. He understood the gesture and it sent up a wave of fresh panic mixed with annoyed anger like bile in his throat. "Please." He said, making his voice soft and worried, not much of an effort as he feared it was going to be. "He needs help." He repeated.

The nurse gulped, but paged the doctors and directed him to lay Yoh on a stretcher. He sat down as they wheeled him into a nearby operating room, shouting and checking over Yoh the entire time. He sighed deeply and put his face in his hands, not knowing what the hell he was going to do now. Should he keep pretending to be Kei? Should he go back to his old ways as part of him wanted to do?

He could have healed Yoh completely, but then they would have known he was Hao again, so obviously there was a large part of him that didn't want people to know that he was Hao. But he couldn't just keep acting like that childish Kei now could he? It would just be too much for him to bear, too humiliating even if only he knew he was faking it. But Yoh knew too... what was Yoh going to do when he woke up?

"Hey, Kei!" Hao looked up to find Horohoro, Ren, Ryu, Faust and Keiko running up to him. He looked down at his hands again. "Hey, buddy, it's going to be ok, Yoh's been through bad stuff before, he'll get through it." Hao was torn between bristling at Horohoro's pat to his shoulder and breaking down and crying in front of them all. He didn't do either, he just sat there.

"Look at me." Keiko's voice was soft, but stern. Hao lifted his head and stared up into her grave eyes. "Hao?" Hao saw out of the corner of his eye all of Yoh's friends tense, but truth be told, he wasn't sure how to answer that question. He didn't feel like how he remembered Hao feeling, and he didn't feel like how Kei felt.

"I don't know." He finally replied, the most honest answer he could give. A shift of cloth told him that Keiko had sat down next to him. A hand brushed his bangs away from his face. He didn't try to stop her, but he also didn't lean into her like Kei would have.

"Why don't you know?" Keiko asked gently.

"There's both, the person I used to be, the person Kei was, and now this... I don't know what voice is mine anymore." Hao responded.

"Maybe you're both." Keiko told him. He looked up at her, brow furrowing in confusion. "Can you honestly say that you could go back to acting completely like either Kei or Hao?"

He thought about that for a long time, not saying a word. None of Yoh's friends moved from where they were standing, watching him. They didn't seem willing to relax, but nor had they immediately tried to attack him when they realized that he wasn't in fact Kei. The minutes ticked by and none of them moved, holding their breaths as they waited for his answer.

"No, I don't think I could." He finally admitted. He couldn't be as innocently happy as Kei was, but he also couldn't blindly hate humans either, not after having been taken in by one for a whole year and knowing her struggles and triumphs. "But how can I be both, the personalities contradict each other."

"You have to figure that out for yourself, take what works from Hao and what works from Kei and see what comes out in the end." Keiko replied. Hao was saved from having to answer by the doctors emerging and wheeling Yoh into a recovery room. They all followed.

"He's in pretty good shape, considering. The wound caused a lot of blood loss but that's about it. He was lucky there weren't any deeper issues." The doctor explained. "He should wake up once the sedative wears off."

Hao hesitated at the door, while the others brushed past him and went to see Yoh. Keiko saw him standing there, one hand on the door, and beckoned to him, a small sad smile on her face. He stepped inside, walking slowly over to Yoh's bed. He couldn't look at him at first and focused on the IV bag of painkillers and the one of blood that dripped their remedies into Yoh's veins.

He finally followed the IV lines down to where they met Yoh's arm and his eyes travelled up the scarred biceps and finally he stared into Yoh's face. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting; Yoh was unconscious and looked only as though he were sleeping, though his face was paler than normal.

How many other times had Yoh looked like this? How many other times that he didn't know about had he been in the hospital? He certainly had a lot of scars, but as Hao he had never bothered to pay them any mind. In fact, Kei had known more about Yoh in his few weeks of knowing him than Hao had known in the years that he was aware of Yoh's existence; that just seemed wrong.

There were a few chairs set up by Yoh's bed, and he sank into one, his eyes still not leaving Yoh's face. Honestly he wasn't sure he wanted Yoh to wake up at all. Yoh had tried to kill him after all when he was Hao; why would that have changed? At the very least Yoh wasn't going to smile at him or hug him like he had with Kei, and that fact hurt inside.

No one spoke, but eventually he heard the rest of them leave, and that they might have been trying to give him some time to think. He was grateful for this, because he really didn't want to have to deal with anyone trying to talk to him or even talk him out of being Hao. He just needed some time to sort himself out.

He looked up slightly, and found Kiyoko standing on the other side of Yoh's bed, eyes boring intently into his. "Tell me." She commanded. He didn't have to ask what she was talking about. He reached out and touched Yoh's cheek. He lowered his head again and began to speak, telling Kiyoko everything he had done to make people hate him.

He didn't look up when he was done, didn't want to see her face. "I promised I would look after Kei, no matter what... Hao, I'm not so sure about." She said after a long moment of silence. He looked up, and saw that she had vanished, leaving him truly alone.

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Wolf: A bit short... like my attention span (Ooh, shiny!). Review plz!


	19. Chapter 19

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Are you sure it was wise to leave Hao alone with Yoh?" Horohoro asked Keiko as they sat outside the clinic, under the shade of the trees.

"He needs some time to himself, and I think Yoh will have some things that are for his ears only when he does wake up." Keiko replied confidently.

"I don't trust it one bit." Ren growled. "Hao's tried to kill us or Yoh how many times in the past?"

"Yes, but he's not just Hao anymore, is he?" Kiyoko stated, appearing soundlessly. "He has Kei's memories and Kei's feelings."

"Yeah, but what if Hao is stronger?" Kiyoko closed her eyes and sighed.

"He told me what he did and I saw in his eyes pain and bafflement. The part of him that is Kei makes him feel remorse, and the rest of him is confused by this behaviour."

"What's your point?" Ren asked.

"My point is that he is listening to that side of him that recoils from what he's done, he's not simply ignoring it. Whether that is because Kei's voice is loud enough to drown out his demons, or if there was always something in him that abhorred the thing he'd become, I do not know." Kiyoko replied. "I swore to protect Kei, but with Hao... I shall see what he decides first."

"And if he chooses the path he had before?" Keiko asked. Kiyoko's eyes turned flinty.

"I will show no mercy to him then." She growled. "Nor should any of you."

"You are a hard maiden." Bason commented.

"When you saw as much death and suffering as I have..." Kiyoko shook her head. "I fought for the lives of the people, and I will continue to do so if Hao decides once again that humanity is not worth saving."

"So will we all." Ren whispered. "For now, we wait. Amidamaru will give us news when there is some."

%&%&%&%

Hao could feel the eyes of Amidamaru on him, though he could not see the samurai spirit. He ignored the heavy gaze, focussing solely on his brother, who still slept, though it had been some time since he'd been brought to this place. He was grateful for the silence and for his solitary watch over his younger twin.

Yoh could have gotten rid of him, or not bothered to warn him and allowed him to walk into the waiting arms of his enemy. He hadn't though. He'd taken Kei under his wing and taught him to fight and to use his shamanic abilities. He'd risked bringing Hao back by teaching him, by even bringing him into his home, and when the X-Laws had come again, he'd risked his life trying to save Kei.

But that was Kei, not Hao who Yoh had tried to save. It would have been different if it had been Hao at the mercy of the X-Laws. Or would he? If he was going to be completely honest with himself, he would have to say he had no idea how Yoh's mind worked. Yoh had always been polite and friendly to him when he'd been Hao, up until that last fight. So what did that mean?

A soft groan drew his attention back to the present and he looked down in time to see Yoh's brow furrow slightly and his body shift on the bed. His heart pounded; half of him was thrilled that Yoh was waking up, and the other half of him was screaming to get the hell out of there before Yoh woke up and got mad at him. He clenched his fists and stubbornly put a clamp on the voice that wanted to leave. He needed to know.

Finally, after what seemed like ages of Yoh struggling out of sleep, the younger twin opened his eyes and blinked blearily at the ceiling. Hao sat quietly, waiting for Yoh to notice him. He would never admit it out loud, but this was the most nervous he'd been for a long time. His heart jumped into his throat as Yoh's eyes shifted, coming to rest on his.

Yoh gave him a tired smile. "Hey." He whispered. Hao opened and then shut his mouth, not sure what to say. Yoh took no notice of his indecision and slowly sat up in the bed, resting his back against the pillow. "I don't hurt nearly as much as I should, but I guess you probably have something to do with that." Hao nodded his head. "Thank you, Hao."

"Why aren't you angry?" Hao asked, finding his voice again.

"Why would I be?" Yoh asked in reply, eyes not wavering from his.

"My reappearance means that you failed in defeating me and that you've lost the brother you've grown to care about." Hao said.

"And none of that is your fault." Yoh said gently but firmly. Yoh stared into his eyes, but Hao's expression was frozen, unrevealing. Yoh reached one hand out and Hao flinched back, away from the touch. Yoh sighed patiently. "You want something from me, I can tell." Hao looked away from him, his hair falling to cover his face. Yoh waited silently for him to speak.

"I... would you have... stepped in between me and Marco if I had been Hao and not Kei?" Hao asked.

"Yes." Yoh's answer was immediate and confident. Hao looked up quickly, unable to hide his surprise. He stared at Yoh and saw no lies in his eyes, and bewilderment surfaced.

"Why?" He demanded. Yoh smiled kindly and leaned over. Hao let out a yelp of surprise when his arms wrapped around his neck. Yoh was hugging him!

"I always cared about you, and I don't care if someone could be considered my enemy, if I see they are going to get hurt, I will not hesitate to help them." Yoh murmured. "That includes you."

"Even if it meant that your head was now on the chopping block?" Hao's voice was hoarse as he tried to force back the lump rising in his throat.

"Even then." Yoh replied determinedly. Hao's tense muscles relaxed and he leaned into the embrace that Yoh still had him in, resting his cheek against Yoh's shoulder. "You don't know how often I wished it could be like this between you and I." Yoh sighed. The two of them silently held each other for a long while. "So, what are you going to do now?" Yoh asked.

"I'm not sure." Hao replied. "I know now I can't let things go back to the way they used to be."

"What made you come to that decision?" Yoh asked.

"Kei did." Hao explained. "Yumi took me in, an orphan with no history, no idea what the world was like and loved me like her own child. She also had to battle her own demons and managed to come on top. She spent the last decade of her life completely sober and died a happy woman. Because of her I have hope in humanity."

"You still love her." Hao nodded his head. "I'm glad, and I think Kei would be happy that his obaa-san's memory isn't going to be tainted."

"We are." Yoh looked up at him in confusion. "Keiko told me I could be both Kei and Hao, and I think she's right, not so much in the way that Kei behaved, but the way he looked at the world. I mean I can't think of it as innocently as Kei could, but it's certainly not as dark seeming as I had thought before."

"That's good to hear." Yoh said. "What are you going to do about your followers? I'm sure that the X-Laws have gone and spread the news that you're alive, so they may want to rejoin you."

"I'll explain to them what I've learned, I suppose. And if that doesn't satisfy them, I'll warn them off trying to hurt you or your friends."

"Thank you." Yoh slowly eased back down into a lying position. "I am glad you're back, aniki."

Hao felt his heart give a strange lurch at the affectionate term. "Please, don't call me that."

"Why not?" Yoh's brow drew together in confusion.

"Because I've done nothing to earn that title." Hao answered. "When I do, then you can call me that."

"If you say so." Yoh chuckled slightly. "I think I'm going to go back to sleep for awhile, haven't had a good sleep in some time. You should tell everyone that I'm ok."

"I'd rather stay here and make sure no one tries to hurt you." Yoh's eyes were beginning to slide closed.

"Then bring them in here with you." He sighed. "Goodnight..." Yoh's lips stretched into an impish grin as his eyes slipped closed. "Aniki."

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Wolf: Review plz!


	20. Chapter 20

Wolf: I own nothing!

Hao looked up as Yoh's friends and family filed in. "So, what did you decide?" Horohoro demanded.

"Well, obviously he couldn't have decided that he needed to kill Yoh, otherwise we wouldn't all just be standing here, now would we?" Ren smacked Horohoro over the head.

"He could still have something else planned." Ryu whispered in a not-so-quiet voice.

"I can hear you." Hao said in a mildly aggravated tone. "And I'd appreciate it if you'd all stop acting like I'm going to bite you or something."

"We have no idea what you have planned, so we're just being cautious." Manta explained nervously. He squeaked in fright when Hao turned his brooding regard on him. Hao merely nodded slightly and looked away again.

"Well?" Keiko encouraged gently. Hao looked up at her and some of the tension eased out of his body at the soft smile she offered him.

"I will allow no more harm to come to Yoh, by anyone's hand." He said quietly.

"That doesn't answer everything." Faust pointed out. "You only say you do not wish to harm Yoh, not what you plan to do with the rest of your life."

"Well, I still plan to win the Shaman King tournament... but I'm not sure where to go from there." Hao said. "Yumi taught me that people are not as bad as I believed, and that they can change."

"So you're willing to change as well." Ren reasoned. Hao nodded, turning his attention back to Yoh.

"Because of Yumi I am willing to give humanity another chance, and because of Yoh I'm willing to give love another chance."

"What will you do about the followers here?" Bason asked, appearing in the air beside Ren. "Word has gotten out and they're looking for you."

"I'll have to explain matters to them." Hao sighed, rubbing at his temples. He paused and then slowly touched the left side of his forehead again. His fingertips traced the scar that had still been left even after Jeanne had healed his mind. "I think I'll keep this, as a reminder of where I've been." He mused.

He stood up. "I'll be back as soon as I'm finished with this piece of business." He looked up at Kiyoko, who was watching him with an unreadable expression on her face. "Will you come with me?" She stared at him for a moment before nodding ever so slightly. Hao walked out of the room, Yoh's friends moving to the side to let him pass. Once he was gone they crowded around Yoh's bed.

"Do you think he's really telling the truth?" Horohoro asked as softly as he could.

"He's telling the truth." Everyone jumped at the sound of Yoh's voice. They all looked down as Yoh blinked one eye open. He smiled at them and sat up, blinking sleepily. "I couldn't sleep."

"Sorry, Yoh." Manta said. Yoh chuckled.

"It's ok, I wanted to be able to talk to you guys anyways." Yoh replied.

"What makes you say that he was telling the truth?" Ryu asked.

"He asked me a question, a very specific question that told me that he was in fact changing." Yoh explained. "He asked me if I would have defended him if he had been Hao and not Kei. He wanted me to care about him."

"You should probably rest a little more Yoh." Faust cautioned him.

"I will, but I want to ask you guys something first." Yoh said. "If I asked Hao to stay living at our place, would you back me up?"

"As long as he doesn't cause trouble, I'm fine with it." Ren replied immediately.

"If you think it's a good idea, then it'll be alright." Horohoro said. Manta and Ryu nodded in agreement.

"I trust your judgement." Faust added.

"And I trust Hao." Keiko finished. "You'll have issues with your grandfather, but I think I can talk your father around. Your grandmother will want to talk to Hao herself to be convinced, but I don't think it will be a problem."

"Thanks, kaa-san." Yoh yawned and laid down again. His friends smiled and left as Yoh's breathing evened out.

"I think we should stay here, just in case the X-Laws try anything." Everyone agreed and found chairs to sit and wait.

%&%&%&%

Hao walked along the streets, hearing silence fall as he passed along. Once upon a time the fearful, awed silence would have delighted him, but now he only felt apprehensive, even if he knew how to defend himself. As he walked his followers fell in step with him, soft whispers trailing after him. They were afraid to speak to him directly, but he could feel their questions.

He led the way out of the village into the forest. He wanted privacy for what he was going to say. A small clearing would suit his purposes nicely. He sat down on a large rock, but did not look at those who had followed him. Kiyoko appeared beside him and he heard soft mutterings arise at her appearance. She simply gave them an icy glare.

"I'm sure you're all wondering what exactly is going on." Hao said, his quiet voice silencing the murmurs. "Quite frankly things are going to change drastically and I feel you have the right to know why." None of them said anything, they just watched him. "After Yoh and I fought for possession of the Great Spirit I was wounded and fled. When my Oversoul finally died, I tumbled to earth and hit my head, losing any memories I had." Hao unconsciously touched the scar on his head. "I was taken in by a human woman, who loved me as her own. I learned that humans can change from her, and I have decided now to give humanity another chance."

"You're kidding!" Someone, he thought it might have been Bill, exclaimed.

"I'm not." Hao said firmly. "Quite frankly I don't care what you decide to do with yourselves now, if you choose to stay with me you will do no harm to anyone, especially my brother. If you choose to follow your own path, don't even think of harming Yoh. That is all I have to say." He stood up and turned to go, not even waiting to see what they would do. If they were with him they would follow.

"A little abrupt, don't you think?" Kiyoko murmured in his ear.

"I covered the essentials, and then let them make their own decisions, no point in drawing it out." Hao replied. He could hear footsteps behind him but he kept walking until he got to the pond where Kei had first seen Yoh. It was a special place, even to him now, a reminder of new life. It was then that he turned around to look at those who followed him. It was Opacho, Kanna, Mari, Macchi and Luchist.

"Why?" Hao asked. Kanna immediately started blushing.

"We owe a lot to you, you took us away from bad situations, so we would follow you, and well... I met someone." Her blush deepened.

"Yeah, he's really nice, doesn't mind Chuck at all, but he's human!" Macchi cried. "Kanna's got a boyfriend. We would have brought him along, he wanted to come, but we were worried."

"Mari thinks we don't have to worry anymore." Mari stated. Hao turned his attention to Luchist.

"I was never completely certain of the destruction of humanity." The tall man admitted. "But you spoke of a peaceful, diverse, green society, and that was what drew me in. The X-Laws, I'm sorry to say, had evolved into the brainwashing, destructive cult that they are today by that point, and I didn't want the kind of world that would be born from them. So, as long as you still feel you can change the world into the Utopia you imagined, then I am with you."

Opacho stepped hesitantly up to him, and then flung her arms around his legs. "Me missed Hao-sama, Hao-sama no leave again."

Hao smiled and picked her up, hugging her close to him. "Okay, I won't leave again, I promise."

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Wolf: Review plz!


	21. Chapter 21

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Yoh has invited me to remain staying at his place for the time being." Hao explained, shifting Opacho so that he was holding her in a one-armed carry. "I don't think it would be wise for any of you to be hanging around there, or the hospital, for the time being. Until things are sorted out enough that there's not going to be some titanic battle simply because someone was in the wrong place at the wrong time, I'll be the one to seek you out, not the other way around."

"Me stay with Hao-sama." Opacho said stubbornly, wrapping little arms around his neck. Hao chuckled softly.

"Alright, you can stay with me." He agreed. He couldn't resist the big brown puppy-dog eyes she had, not this time around anyways. Opacho had always been Hao's one little foray into normality, his one tiny admission that he was in fact lonely for human company. "I'm going back to the hospital, check up on Yoh. In the meantime... don't get yourselves killed or anything."

"We'll do our best." Kanna said with an ironic quirk of her eyebrow. "Maybe I'll go tell Gregoire that he can come now."

"Yay, Greg's coming!" Macchi shouted, skipping off after Kanna. Mari rolled her eyes, but walked off with the other two girls. Luchist bowed and walked off in a different direction. Opacho climbed Hao like a tree to perch on his shoulders, gripping his hair lightly.

"Shall we go see how my brother is doing?" He asked her.

"Okay!" She crowed, giggling when Hao laughed at her enthusiasm. They set out through the forest, skirting the village for the time being, and arriving at the hospital just as Lyserg was also going inside. Lyserg halted, and then smiled nervously, leading Hao to believe he'd heard the rumours.

"Kei?" The green-haired boy asked. A knife twisted in Hao's gut. He had liked Lyserg when he was Kei, and found he still liked him now. How to tell the boy who had gone against everything he believed to come to like Kei that he was once again the monster that killed his parents? He looked away from Lyserg.

"I'm sorry." He murmured. The sharp intake of breath told him Lyserg understood exactly what he was saying. He looked up and found Lyserg's hand wandering towards the gun he still had, even though he'd abandoned the X-Laws. "That would be unwise, I don't want to hurt you, Lyserg."

Something in his tone gave Lyserg pause and he stared fiercely into Hao's eyes. "You don't want to hurt me, because I can be of use to you?" He snarled. Hao shook his head.

"I don't want to hurt you, because for a brief time, you were my friend, and I would not like to see my friends hurt."

"I was Kei's friend, not yours." Lyserg snapped. "You're not Kei."

"Not in whole, but he still exists as a part of me, and I have refused to deny the lessons that he teaches me." Hao swallowed slightly, looking down. "I was happy, for the first time in a thousand years, I was happy as Kei. I realize now that becoming king of this world isn't going to take away the pain and loneliness I always felt."

"You?" Lyserg scoffed.

"There's a reason people become the way they are, Lyserg, don't forget that." Hao said softly. "That doesn't excuse what I've done though."

"Why should I believe you?" Lyserg's eyes narrowed.

"Because I'm not just Hao, I'm Kei as well. We're part of the same person, and the only reason I call myself Hao is because I was him the longest."

"How can you be both?"

"It's hard to explain, but it's like I've combined the experiences of both into a new personality that has traits of both." Lyserg's hard gaze didn't waver from him and Hao got the sense that the young man was trying to see into his soul. "It doesn't matter, does it? No matter what I say, from the moment I admitted I wasn't Kei, you weren't going to see me as anything but the monster that killed your parents."

"And why shouldn't I?"

"I'm not saying you should act like I didn't commit that horrible act, but that's all you see, you can't even consider the fact that I may have any other feelings but hate, or that maybe that I can be hurt too." Hao suddenly felt tired, as the burden of his mother's death, along with the deaths of all those he'd killed, either himself or indirectly, settled on his shoulders. "Are you going to visit him then?" He asked Lyserg.

"Not if you're going to be there." Lyserg growled. Hao sighed softly, deciding not to tell Lyserg that Yoh had offered his home to him, it would only hurt the boy more.

"I'll be off then, he's probably not awake right now anyways." Hao said finally, turning on his heel and walking back into the forest.

"He made Hao-sama sad." Opacho said in a displeased tone.

"I'm sad knowing that I am the reason he is like this." Hao sighed in reply. "How on earth did I blind myself so much that I felt nothing while causing so much pain and sorrow?"

"Hao-sama hurt too. Hao-sama not want to feel, so Hao-sama no more feel." Opacho replied practically. "Hao-sama used to talk in his sleep." She explained when he looked up at her. "No one else knew." She added quickly.

"I think Yoh knew I was hurting as well." Hao said to her. "He never hated me, now that I look back on it, he never seemed to hold any of that kind of emotion towards him. I made him angry sometimes, but he always was as kind to me as he was with everyone else."

"Yoh-sama's nice, Opacho likes him." Opacho rubbed her cheek against the top of Hao's head, as though assuring herself that he was really there. Hao smiled slightly at the gesture. "What's Hao-sama going to do now?"

"Since I don't feel like having a run-in with someone else that hates me, how's about we just walk through the woods for a little while."

"Okay!" Opacho agreed eagerly. "Kanna and the other girls have been taking care of me, did Hao-sama know that?"

"No, I didn't. I'll have to thank them for that though." Hao chuckled. "I made a new friend while I was gone."

"Like Kanna made friends with Gregoire?"

"Sort of, my friend is a spirit." Hao looked around. "I'm not sure if she's still around though." He jerked when Kiyoko appeared silently in front of him. "Ah, hello Kiyoko. Kiyoko, this is Opacho, Opacho, this is Kiyoko." Kiyoko bowed her head to the small girl.

"Kiyoko looks like Amidamaru." Opacho mused.

"I am meant to." Kiyoko said, her voice gentle. "He is my hero, after all."

"How come you're with Hao-sama?"

"He fell into the field that I had died in." Kiyoko answered. "I was curious and so I followed him. When he was Kei I helped him learn about the world and would have defended him if need be. As Hao... I don't think he needs any help defending himself." She said with a sardonic smile.

"I'm happy you decided to stick around." Her icy eyes bored into him.

"I promised to look after Kei, and you still have a bit of Kei in you." She said simply. Hao nodded his understanding. "By the way, I was checking in with Yoh and the others-"

"Flirting with Amidamaru on the side no doubt." Kiyoko flushed at the suggestion but didn't deny it.

"Anyways, Lyserg was going on about you being Hao again and Keiko came right out and said that you would be staying with them for the time being." Hao winced.

"I suppose that's better than him coming over and finding me sitting in the kitchen or something." He muttered. "What did he do?"

"He squawked for a couple minutes and then left." Kiyoko shrugged. "Woke Yoh up, though."

"Do you want to see Yoh now, then?" Hao asked Opacho. Opacho nodded so happily and eagerly that Hao thought her head might wobble right off.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	22. Chapter 22

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh smiled when Hao came into the hospital room. "How'd it go?" He asked.

"Opacho, Luchist and the Hanagumi girls elected to stay with me, the others I guess will find their own paths." He replied, lifting Opacho from atop his head and placing her on Yoh's bed.

"You guess?" Ren asked.

"I didn't stick around long enough to see how they were going to take it." Hao shrugged. "I heard that Lyserg knows I'm still going to be staying with you."

"Yeah, I don't think he took it very well." Horohoro said with a faint smile.

"You're okay with this?" Hao asked them.

"I knew the risks going into this." Yoh answered quietly. "I also knew that there would be those who wouldn't take it well, Lyserg included."

"The boy is ruled by his hatred, unfortunately." Faust whispered. "Not healthy for him, I fear."

"Did you talk to him at all?" Ren asked.

"I did. I didn't outright apologise to him, because that would have simply made him more angry, but I let him know that I didn't want him to get hurt." Hao replied.

"Hopefully one of us will be able to change his mind about you." Yoh said optimistically. Hao gave him a doubtful look. "Stranger things have happened." Yoh pointed out. Hao paused for a moment and then nodded his head, agreeing with the statement.

"Yoh-sama?" Opacho asked in a timid voice. Yoh smiled at her gently, reaching one hand out to pat he head.

"What is it?"

"Can Opacho stay with Yoh-sama too? Opacho doesn't want to leave Hao-sama." Opacho pleaded, her brown eyes wide and hopeful. Yoh chuckled.

"I think we have room to spare." He replied. He yelped in pain when Opacho pounced on him, hugging him tightly around the neck. She released him almost immediately at the sound, backing up so she wouldn't hurt him more, murmuring apologies. Yoh just laughed again.

"We've worked out a schedule, to keep an eye on Yoh while he's in the hospital, which should only be a couple days." Ren said. "Tonight you are looking after him from midnight until 7 in the morning."

"Sounds fair." Hao shrugged, not really concerned about the late night.

%&%&%&%

Hao looked up at the moon peeking through the clouds, and back down at his watch. It was almost midnight. He got up, dusting dirt off his pants, and headed for the hospital. He rubbed at his eyes, now wishing he'd had the sense to take a nap before going for his shift.

He'd avoided going back to Yoh's house for the time being, not wanting to get into a row with Yohmei. He didn't know how he would react if his temper was stoked and decided to stay away and just talk to the girls and Luchist. They filled him in on things that had been going on with them and he elaborated on the story of Kei.

When it had gotten late he persuaded Opacho to go with the girls for the night, worried for her safety around Yoh's grandfather and not wanting her to stay up all night. He then settled down to wait for midnight, giving him time to think about things, including something he now remembered from his and Yoh's battle for the Great Spirit. He would have to wait until Yoh was awake, and they were alone to ask about it.

Horohoro looked up, already half-asleep, when he came in. The blue-haired boy didn't say anything, just gave Hao a little wave and lurched out the door. Hao sat down in the chair he had vacated and looked down at Yoh's sleeping face. He smiled to himself, thinking that he hadn't felt this content in a long, long time, and it was thanks to Yoh.

"Hey." Hao looked up at the whispered voice. Keiko stood smiling in the doorway, a thermos and a book in her hands. "I thought that you could use a little help staying awake. Yoh mentioned you like coffee?" Hao nodded his head. She offered him the thermos and the book, which happened to be the last Harry Potter book. He took both, running his hand absentmindedly over the spine.

"Thank you, Keiko." He said.

"So formal." Keiko said, somewhat sadly. "I think I understand though." She added before Hao could open his mouth. "You're worried that to view another as mother would be dishonourable to your mother's name." She sighed. "If I died, and Mikihisa married another, I would want Yoh to love the woman he married and would be happy to share the title of 'mother' with her. I think your mother would say the same."

"You're probably right." Hao admitted, keeping his eyes down. "It just..."

"Hurts." Keiko supplied. "I know, I was very close with my grandmother and when she passed away, it was like a part of me went with her."

"Yeah." Hao sighed. Keiko rested her hand on his head.

"I'm not saying that you do have to call me mother, but you don't have to hold back around me, okay?"

"I'll try." Hao said.

"That's all I ask." She said. "I'll see you in the morning." She said, walking out the door. Hao nodded and then unscrewed the lid of the thermos, inhaling the strong, bitter smell of coffee. Black, just the way he liked it. He took a careful sip, the heat burning down his throat and the caffeine buzzing in his nerves. He only hoped it would be enough to last the night.

He flipped open the book, settling down to read it. "Still like that one?" Kiyoko asked, materializing next to him.

"They're interesting books, why wouldn't I?" She shrugged. "I'm not completely different from Kei, I'm sure you've noticed." She stared at him a long, uncomfortable moment.

"I suppose I'm nitpicking." She admitted.

"You've been kind of cold since I regained my memories."

"Everybody's got their reasons for doing things, but it doesn't make the evil things okay to do." She replied. "From what you've told me, you murdered people in the name of creating some kind of Utopia, but to me I felt like you were looking to become a tyrant, and I don't like tyrants. I've been worried that you were going to turn back to that path."

"It's not obvious that I won't?" Hao asked. She was silent for another minute.

"We'll see." was her reply. "But, you are starting to convince me." She added before disappearing again. Hao smiled slightly and settled in for the long haul.

By the time the morning sun began to shed a pinkish light across the room, Hao was dead tired and ready for some sleep. His eyelids were drooping until a hand touched his wrist, nearly catapulting him out of his seat in surprise. He then heard a familiar, friendly laugh and relaxed, mock-glaring down at his brother.

"Did I scare you?" Yoh asked teasingly. "You look wrecked."

"Haven't slept all night." Hao replied hoarsely, shaking his empty thermos. He looked at his watch and groaned when he saw it was almost seven. "I still have a little bit to go, though."

"Just think of how good it will be to fall into bed after this." Yoh said. Hao only groaned and ran his hands through his hair. He then remembered what he wanted to ask Yoh.

"I remember something, something that didn't make sense to me when it happened, and I was hoping you could help me understand."

"Go ahead."

"When we were fighting, for control of the Great Spirit, I remember looking into your face when you were about to deal the final blow and I remember that there was no hate in your eyes, and that confused me."

"Is that why you hesitated?" Yoh asked, surprising Hao. He nodded his head. "I never hated you, Hao. I don't even know if I can hate, but I knew there had to be a reason why you were the way you were. With Lyserg as my friend I understood that hatred can twist you into something ugly, something you would have never wanted to become in any other case, and I thought that maybe that's what had happened to you."

Hao shifted uncomfortably, amazed that Yoh had managed to work all that out. "You've pretty much got that spot on." He told Yoh. "I'd tell you the whole story, but my head so muddled I'd probably screw it up."

"Well, get some sleep, and we can talk more later." Yoh said as Ryu strode in to relieve Hao. Hao stood up and smiled tiredly at his brother.

"I'd like that."

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Wolf: Anyone noticing my frequent Harry Potter mentions? Sorry, but the last movie has come out, and as a major Harry Potter fan for years now, this event has both excited me and depressed me, so a little bit of that is coming out here. IT'S OVER, AHHHH! But, as J. K. Rowling said 'Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.'


	23. Chapter 23

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Are you planning to stay this night in your bed or are you going to hide out in the woods some more." Ren asked as Hao staggered out of the hospital. He blinked blearily at Ren a moment before answering.

"I'm going to find my bed now I think."

"That's probably a good idea." Ren said with a faint smirk. "I'll come with you, make sure the old man doesn't give you any trouble."

Hao nodded and looked back once, finding Kiyoko and Amidamaru chatting on the roof of the hospital. Amidamaru touched her hand and Hao smiled as Kiyoko blushed deeply. "What are you looking at?" Ren asked. Hao gestured towards the two spirits.

"At least one of us is having a good day." He mumbled. Ren's mouth twitched upward in a brief, faint smile. The two of them then turned and headed back to the house. "I'm still a little surprised about all this."

"About what?"

"How easy-going you all still are around me." Ren shrugged his shoulders.

"You don't act like you did." He explained. "Every once in awhile you get that superior tone in your voice, but it's not like you're making the same kind of casual threats and plans of violence you used to. You don't feel as dangerous, I'm sorry to say."

"I think that's a good thing." Hao replied, yawning widely.

"And that sort of reaction is why we are so calm around you. You don't act completely like Hao anymore." Ren said. "You're not, I realized that, but that's why we're still comfortable with you. That, and we trust Yoh's judgement." Hao nodded and Ren stopped him before he walked into the house. "I'll go in first, distract the old man."

"Okay." Ren went in and after a moment Hao went in as well, quietly sneaking up the stairs and into his designated room and promptly fell asleep.

_He was standing on top of the Spirit of Fire, looking on as Yoh rushed towards him with his giant Amidamaru Oversoul. It was the battle for the possession of the Great Spirit, but now he felt trapped, his body was moving to strike down his brother, but his mind was screaming to stop. There was no hesitation in his motions this time, Yoh would be killed!_

_**No, no, no!**__ He screamed out inside his head, trying to gain control of his body. The Spirit of Fire's arm lifted, striking down at Yoh..._

Hao jerked out of sleep, teeth locked together to seal in the scream that was rising in his throat. He sat up, panting and sweating slightly. He closed his eyes and tried to bring his racing pulse under control; he knew Yoh was alright, he hadn't killed him when they'd last fought. But he could have. That little thought sent a shudder down his spine.

"Nightmare?" Hao lifted his head and saw that Kiyoko had returned. He nodded his head. "Worse than the ones you used to have?"

"I don't know, I never was able to remember anything of them beyond fire and rage." Hao answered. "Actually, I think that does make this one worse than those, at least I couldn't remember trying to kill my brother."

"At least." Kiyoko agreed. "How long are you planning to hide from the rest of the world?"

"Until I figure out how to deal with the rest of the world." Hao replied. "I suppose I'll have to start with the old man, that's not going to be fun, and I don't know how Mikihisa's going to react to this."

"Never going to find out if you don't jump in." Kiyoko muttered. Hao simply gave her a wry look and changed into some clean clothes. He combed his hair and looked in the mirror for a long moment, staring at the scar on his forehead. Finally he sighed and headed downstairs, preparing to face the music.

"How did you sleep, Hao?" Keiko asked when he appeared in the kitchen. Mikihisa, Yohmei and Kino all froze at the name and those with sight slowly turned to stare at Hao.

"It could have been better." Hao answered softly.

"What is going on?" Yohmei growled. "Why have you all the sudden called him Hao?"

"Because I remember." Hao answered. Yohmei and Mikihisa stiffened.

"You don't seem too concerned about this, Keiko." Kino commented.

"He may remember being Hao, but he's not the same as he was." Keiko answered. "Even you must be able to see that."

"No I do not!" Yohmei thundered. Mikihisa however watched Hao for a long, uncomfortable moment.

"How do you know, Keiko?"

"He's been watching over Yoh all night." Keiko replied. "If he wanted to hurt Yoh, he would have done it then, when he was alone with him."

"He was alone with Yoh, for a whole night?" Yohmei yelped.

"Are you going to keep repeating everything she says?" Hao demanded, getting annoyed. Yohmei glared at him, and he glared back. "Yes, I stayed with Yoh last night, to protect him if the X-Laws would try to harm him."

"Why would the X-Laws be going after him?" Mikihisa asked. Hao explained the whole situation to them.

"I knew we should have just killed him." Yohmei muttered.

"And what good would that have that done?" Kino asked cantankerously. "We would have come back in 500 years stronger than ever. I keep telling you that we need some other way, but do you listen, no!"

"Kino, that's enough!" Yohmei growled. He then yelped as Kino smacked him over the head with her walking stick.

"Stupid old man." Kino muttered. "You think that the X-Laws will try something?" She asked Hao.

"They've already tried to kill him, and he was trying to help me, so they probably view him as a threat." Hao said. "Not to mention Lyserg knows I'm Hao again and that Yoh is still letting me live here, so he might go to the X-Laws."

"You can't stay here." Yohmei growled.

"It's not your decision, tou-san." Keiko replied fiercely. "No one else seems to be as adamant about this as you. Yoh's friends are fine with it as well. He's proven he can be trusted." Yohmei snorted. "Enough, he staying."

"And you will endanger our lives."

"No more than trying to kill him would." Mikihisa said. "He doesn't act like a threat, and I'm willing to take the chance if it means no one else gets hurt."

"We'll all get hurt if he stays here."

"You stubborn old goat!" Kino cried. "If you would get your head out of the sand and look at what's right in front of you, maybe you'd actually see something! Ignore the old man, Hao, I think he inherited your stubbornness, unfortunately."

"Thank you, Kino." Hao said. Just then, Amidamaru appeared in the room, looking panicked.

"Lyserg's taken Yoh."

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Wolf: Review plz!


	24. Chapter 24

Wolf: I own nothing!

"What?" Hao yelled, his voice coming out an octave higher than normal. "How?"

"Ryu has a soft spot for Lyserg, and Yoh hoped to be able to talk to him, so they let him in." Amidamaru explained quickly. "But then he attacked Ryu and bound me with his wire before taking Yoh with him. Yoh was still too tired to fight back and I think Lyserg may have knocked him out, because he wasn't struggling at all."

"This is your fault!" Yohmei yelled. "We should have killed you when we had the chance!"

"Do you think it would have ended there?" Hao snapped back. "Do you honestly think that your enemies would disappear with me? Let's take the X-Laws for example, as I'm sure that's where Lyserg's taken Yoh. Do you really believe they would allow my family, my brother to survive? No, they want to wipe out any trace of me, and that includes those who have ties to me, no matter how they feel about me."

"What do you suggest we do, then?" Mikihisa asked.

"This is my fault, I will fix it myself." Hao answered.

"I don't think that will be enough." Kino said. "The X-Laws have amassed quite a following in the last little while, and now their ranks have swelled to encompass some of your own followers."

"What?" Kino shrugged her shoulders.

"There are always those whose only wish is to follow power where it will." She said. "You and the X-Laws are not so different, seeking to 'purify' the world, so there would be some whose ideals are flexible enough to make the change. You will need back-up if you have any hope of defeating them all and taking back Yoh without harm to yourself or him."

"We'll go." Ren and Horohoro said together.

"As will I." Mikihisa and Faust said. Yohmei just grumbled, folding his arms and giving them all a stubborn look.

"Stupid old goat." Kino muttered. "I'd gather what followers you have left as well." She told Hao.

"That's where I'm headed, as soon as I get my sword." Hao replied, running upstairs to do just that. "Will you come with me to collect the others?" He asked those who were going to fight with him.

"If we plan to go straight to the X-Laws, I would say yes." Mikihisa replied. "We need to move quickly. If Yoh is indeed in the hands of the X-Laws, every minute we waste is another they have to torture him." Hao nodded in agreement and the five of them set out.

Hao didn't bother to knock on the door of the house his remaining followers were staying in, he just walked right in. "We have a problem." He told them. "Yoh's been taken."

"What? How?" Luchist asked.

"Lyserg took him from the hospital."

"I'll bet he took him to the X-Laws." Kanna muttered.

"That's what I believe as well." Hao replied. "We're going to get him back. Are you coming?"

"Of course." Macchi yelped. "We will help you with whatever you need, Hao-sama, you know that!"

"Opacho come too." Opacho declared. Hao got down on one knee to look her in the eyes.

"No, Opacho." He said quietly. "This is going to be dangerous and I don't want to have to worry about protecting you. Some of us might not come back from this, understand?"

"But-" Opacho protested. A look from Hao shut her up and she pouted. "Promise to come back?" She asked instead. Hao gave her a sad look.

"I can't promise that." He told her. "But I promise to try. Amidamaru, can you escort her to the Asakuras' residence? Keiko will be able to look after her." Amidamaru nodded and ushered Opacho out through the back door. Hao could hear her chattering to the samurai spirit and felt a pang of sorrow. Perhaps he should have said a proper goodbye, just in case.

"Let's go." He said instead, squaring his shoulders and marching out the front door. The rest of them followed, mixing uneasily together into one disorganized clump. "Luchist, where are the X-Laws camped?" Hao asked.

"They spend a lot of their time on a ridge overlooking the village." Luchist reported. "It's enough space for the amount of followers they've amassed and they can keep their eyes on things when they're there." Hao nodded his head and turned in the direction that would take them to that ridge.

"I don't like this." Kiyoko murmured.

"I would have thought you'd be happy for a chance to fight." Hao replied.

"This smells too much like a trick."

"I know it's a trick. The only reason they'd take Yoh is to get me to follow." Hao replied. "I don't feel any strange magics though, so it's not a very good trap." Kiyoko still looked dubious. "My one worry is the sheer number of followers they may have amassed combined with the angels and Shamash may be enough to overwhelm even me."

"Do you believe we can come out of this unscathed?" Kiyoko asked.

"Maybe, maybe not." Hao said. "I'm not so arrogant anymore to believe that I cannot be hurt." He said, touching the scar on his forehead lightly. "My prime concern is getting Yoh away from the X-Laws, beyond that, I don't care."

"It may be prudent to get rid of the X-Laws while we're at it. They have the potential to become very dangerous if their madness spreads further."

"You're suggesting we terminate them?" Hao asked. She nodded her head.

"They're dangerous, and if half of what I've heard from your new friends is true, it could be very bad if they somehow manage to take over."

"But killing..." Hao trailed off, embarrassed to say he was reluctant to cause more bloodshed and add to his nightmares. Kiyoko gave him a sympathetic look.

"Sometimes it's the only way." She said. Hao nodded curtly and then focussed on the quickly approaching ridge. The others with him unsheathed their weapons and formed their Oversouls. Hao kept his weapon sheathed for the moment; perhaps he could talk his way out of this one. Probably not, but he wanted to be able to say he tried to take the moral high road first instead of simply turning it into a bloodbath.

Luchist's intuition proved to be correct and their small army, if their rag-tag group could be called that, emerged from the trees and found all of the shamans that Marco and the Iron Maiden had brainwashed into joining them waiting. Hao's eyes quickly roved over the large group, searching for any sign of Yoh. He found him being held by Lyserg, his hands on his head and a pistol pressed to his back.

Hao felt some tension leave him. At least he had a chance of reasoning with Lyserg, which was more than he could say for anyone else in the crowd. Yoh seemed unharmed except for the wounds he'd already received and only looked slightly nervous.

"So, Hao." Marco called over the muttering of those assembled. "Some of your former followers seem to believe you've gone soft." A collective jeering laugh echoed his words. "I do not believe it myself, it is either an elaborate scheme on your part or temporary insanity. However, if you wish to prove me wrong, you could give yourself up and save us the trouble of having to capture you to punish you for your misdeeds."

Hao chose to ignore the taunt and focussed on Yoh. "Are you hurt?" He asked his twin. Yoh blinked at him and then shook his head slowly. "Well, I suppose that's a relief."

"Don't ignore me!" Marco snapped, irritated that Hao was refusing to rise to his bait. "Though, if you're so concerned about your other half, maybe he should be the first to die." Marco's lips curled into a cruel smile. "Lyserg, shoot Yoh Asakura."

Hao saw Lyserg freeze, his face going more pale than it already was. Here at least was something that he could work with. "He's your friend, Lyserg." He called gently. "He's not the one you want to hurt."

"Shut up." Lyserg growled, but the hand holding the pistol trembled slightly.

"You kill him you'll be doing the same thing I did to your parents." Hao said, his insides clenching at the memory. "Then you'll be no better than I am, do you want that?"

"Enough of this!" Marco roared. "Lyserg, kill the Asakura boy!"

Hao held his breath as he waited for what Lyserg would do next.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	25. Chapter 25

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh's muscles were starting to cramp up from being so tense. Lyserg still had the gun pressed against his back, but he hadn't moved since Marco had given the order to kill him. The only thing keeping him from panicking was his brother's eyes, staring steadily into his. 'It's going to be ok.' Those eyes told him, and he believed it. Hao wasn't going to let anything happen to him.

"Lyserg..." Marco's voice was a warning growl. Yoh swallowed thickly, still watching his brother. After what seemed like an eternity Yoh heard what could have only been a small sob, and the barrel of the gun was removed from his back.

He bolted, running faster than he'd ever run in his life and not stopping until he skidded to a halt beside Hao, falling on his behind in the process. Immediately as he fell he saw that the X-Laws were mobilizing, launching their angels or whatever spirit guardians they happened to have at Hao and the others. Marco was stalking towards Lyserg with murder in his eyes.

"Hao!" Yoh called, pointing to the problem. Hao followed his gaze and his eyes narrowed. He leapt, launching himself over the oncoming horde of X-Laws, batting Marco aside easily. "Coming?" He asked Lyserg pleasantly. Tearful green eyes looked up at him and the boy gave a timid nod. Hao gripped him around the waist and launched them both back over to Yoh, who he was glad to see had gotten Harusame from Horohoro and was fighting against the X-Laws.

"We're in for it this time." Kanna said rather cheerily. "You know, Gregoire's flight comes in today, I'm supposed to meet him."

"Well, we'll just have to finish up here before then, won't we?" Hao replied. "Don't hesitate to kill if it's the only way." His followers nodded, and to his surprise, so did Yoh's friends. Even Yoh had a determined look in his eyes. He looked to his right and found Lyserg still practically glued to his side, eyes wide with fear.

"If you're not going to help, you may want to get behind someone or just get out of here." He said in an annoyed tone. Lyserg looked up at him briefly and then edged behind him. Hao sighed and rolled his eyes before focusing on the three men built like refrigerators trying to plough him into the ground. He had Kiyoko integrated with the sword, much like Yoh with Amidamaru, and he just whirled around the three lummoxes effortlessly.

"I think the X-Laws have let their standards drop a little too low!" Luchist commented while flooring a girl who looked like the poster child of crack addiction. The Hanagumi girls were dealing with several 'gangster' looking young men, who kept swearing at the three girls. Horohoro and Ren were taking down a Viking wannabe and Ryu and Faust were knocking out an older couple with large cross pendants and bibles each.

Hao frowned slightly, these new recruits were very weak, though there was a lot of them. It dawned on him that they were a distraction, a way to tire them out before pulling out the big guns. "Conserve your energy!" He roared at the others. "They're just dupes, don't use up too much furyiochu."

"Kind of hard not to when they keep coming at you." Yoh replied, knocking out one attacker and blocking another. "Maybe we can goad them into attacking us themselves?" Yoh suggested. Hao blinked and then grinned.

"I formally apologize for ever calling, or thinking of you as stupid, Yoh." Yoh grinned back. "Let's see if we can get them riled enough." Yoh relayed the idea to the others, who all grinned and nodded in agreement. Everyone wanted a chance to make Marco, or better yet, the Iron Maiden, lose their cool.

"Too afraid to face me on your own?" Hao taunted Marco, gratified to hear the tall blond growl slightly. "Hiding behind your little followers, I think you believe you can't beat me on your own, and you'd be right."

Echoing Hao's sentiments were various cat-calls from Yoh's friends and his own followers. They seemed to enjoy mocking the uptight blond and his followers, but considering the amount of crap that they'd all put up with from the X-Laws, it didn't surprise Hao. The constant heckling was starting to get to Marco, but instead of leaping into battle himself, he sent Hao's former minions after them.

These ones took a little more effort on their part to take down, but they seemed to avoid taking on Hao himself and kind of backed off when he stepped in to defend one of his friends against them. He let Yoh and the others deal with them while he continued his jeers at Marco and the Iron Maiden, who now were the only ones who hadn't stepped in to fight.

"Why not just attack them yourself?" Kanna asked him.

"Because then it looks like they are the ones in the right." Hao answered and then continued mocking Marco. A thought then occurred to him and he began to mock the Iron Maiden instead, knowing Marco went crazy at a single harsh word against his 'goddess'. His intuition was correct and Marco launched Michael at him with a roar.

Hao switched Oversoul forms then, forming Kiyoko into the massive form he'd had her in before, perching on her shoulder and basically just letting her do her thing. Since everyone else had either knocked out, or perhaps killed their opponents, they paused to watch Marco and Hao battle it out.

Michael and Kiyoko parried, dodged and clashed with each other, but as they fought on, it soon became clear that Kiyoko was the better swordswoman, and that Marco was going to lose. It seemed that Marco had sensed this as well and changed tactics, dodging Michael around Kiyoko and heading straight for Yoh.

Yoh blocked him with ease even as Hao tried to get to him, but the Iron Maiden decided that it was time for her to get involved and used Shamash to strike out at Kiyoko. Kiyoko held Shamash back, but it meant that she and Hao couldn't help Yoh. Hao growled softly, annoyed and worried; he was well aware that he might have to kill the girl in order to prevent anyone else being hurt.

Yoh watched his brother out of the corner of his eye as he battled Marco. Hao seemed to be doing alright, but he was also holding back somewhat. Yoh figured he didn't want to have to hurt the Iron Maiden if it wasn't necessary. He turned his attention back to Marco, whose face was twisted in a snarl of maddened fury.

This was going to end with one of them dead, Yoh could tell just by the look in Marco's eyes. Marco's attacks against him became more and more frenzied as he realized that Yoh was in fact a better swordsman than he had anticipated. Yoh, though holding his own, was becoming tired and he was still sore from the wounds he'd already suffered.

So it was no surprise to him when he stumbled back and tripped. He landed on his backside, wind knocked out of him in an explosive gasp. Marco cackled in triumph, perhaps not realizing that every one of Yoh's friends was free to help him, and commanded Michael to destroy him. Before anyone else could make a move, a large rapier ran Marco through.

He choked, staring over Yoh's shoulder in surprise as his Oversoul dissipated. Yoh looked behind him to find Lyserg, pale-faced, with his gun out. "Lyserg?" Marco managed to gasp out before collapsing, dead on the ground. Lyserg proceeded to faint as soon as that happened. Yoh went to go help him but halted, flinching, when the Iron Maiden let out a furious scream.

Everyone turned to watch as she attempted to get around Hao to get at Yoh, seeking revenge for her keeper's death. Hao wasn't having any of that and Kiyoko sliced through Shamash, and then through her as she tried to hurtle past. Two sickening thuds announced the landing of both halves of her body on the earth.

Hao disengaged his Oversoul and looked at his friends. Most of them looked a little green, and he could understand why. He'd sliced clean through Jeanne's belly, neatly severing her in half, and there were bits hanging out of each half.

"If only I had Spirit of Fire." He grumbled half-heartedly.

"We'll talk to Silva and the Patch will take care of them." Luchist said wearily. "Such a pity." He sighed, thinking of how twisted the organization he'd created had become.

"What about the survivors?" Horohoro asked, prodding an unconscious man with his toe.

"Leave them. They'll scatter without a leader probably." Hao replied. "We need to get Yoh and Lyserg to the infirmary."

"I'm fine." Yoh protested. Hao gave him a fierce look and he grumbled but made no other protests. Ryu picked up Lyserg, cradling the small boy in his arms and wailing about 'poor Lyserg'. Hao understood that Ryu was very attached to the young man, but frankly he had a headache and Ryu sounded a police siren on steroids. Apparently he wasn't the only one annoyed.

"Calm down, man!" Kanna ordered. "Before I drop-kick you in the balls." Thankfully Ryu stopped after that, even letting out a fearful squeak. Hao sighed in relief, slinging an arm around Yoh's shoulders, keeping him as close as possible.

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Wolf: Review plz!


	26. Chapter 26

Wolf: I own nothing!

Lyserg slowly became aware that he was lying down and that there were people talking nearby. He cracked an eyelid open and stared up into the bright lights of the infirmary recovery room. He sat up cautiously, worried about an attack. Amidamaru nodded at him from his post at the doorway. Lyserg gulped slightly and nodded back.

He looked around and saw Yoh first in the other bed, chatting with his mother and father, probably reassuring them that he was in fact alright. Lyserg looked around the rest of the room, flinching back at the sight of Hao sitting in a chair in one corner, having a conversation with a man that Lyserg didn't recognise.

He was a big man, easily over six feet tall and muscular. He had a wild, thick mane of black hair that got in his eyes and extended to the nape of his neck. He had well-defined cheekbones and a square jaw with a small goatee gracing a cleft chin. Sleepy-looking hazel-green eyes blinked at Hao and then the man laughed, exposing a set of pearly whites.

"Lyserg!" Lyserg yelped as he was engulfed in a bone-crushing hug. Ryu squeezed even tighter, driving the breath from his lungs. "I'm so happy you're alright."

"He won't be if you keep suffocating him." Hao told Ryu from the corner. Ryu jumped back and apologized profusely.

"It's okay, Ryu." Lyserg said hoarsely. "I'm just glad you're not all mad at me."

"Of course not." Ryu assured him, ruffling his hair. "Right, Yoh?"

"We're not mad." Yoh affirmed from his bed. Lyserg didn't look at him, feeling ashamed.

"But I took you to the X-Laws, I almost shot you." He whined. "You should hate me."

"And you should know by now that I don't hate." Yoh said kindly. "Your hatred clouded your judgement, as hatred tends to do. You let me go and you took down Marco, and for that I am thankful."

"You're too nice Yoh." Lyserg said wonderingly while shaking his head. Yoh shrugged his shoulders and grinned carelessly.

"Well, it all seems to have worked out, hasn't it?"

"I suppose." Lyserg carefully stood up and glanced over at Hao and the other man again. "Who is he?" He whispered.

"That's Gregoire, Kanna's beau." Lyserg blinked and stared.

"But... he's human!"

"Yeah, I know, kind of throws you for a loop, doesn't it?" Yoh chuckled. Gregoire and Hao stood up and shook hands. Gregoire then walked out and Hao wandered over to Yoh's side, shaking his head. "What?" Yoh asked.

"He's given me a nickname." Hao said, sounding exasperated and amused at the same time. "Vader."

"What, like Darth Vader?" Yoh asked.

"Yes, but it's the German word for father, apparently I seem like a father to Kanna after lecturing him about what would happen if he hurt her." Hao sighed. "He says I'm a bit scary, a bit dark, like the character, and I remind him of a father."

"Aw, that's sweet." Keiko cooed. Hao actually blushed slightly.

"That's too cool, getting a nickname like that." Yoh said. "The only one I've gotten is from Anna, and that's just 'idiot'."

"I had to stop Anna from kicking Opacho out of the house." Keiko revealed. "Kaa-san seems to have had it with that girl's disrespect for all other life-forms, if the yelling I heard is any indication."

"Does that mean I might not have to deal with her?" Yoh asked eagerly.

"It was Yohmei and Kino who decided that she would be a good match, though Kino had some reservations." Mikihisa explained. "Yohmei was the one who pushed for it and his absolute rule over this family seems to be slipping now, doesn't it?" He looked at Hao.

"Does that bother you?" Hao asked.

"Not particularly." Mikihisa replied mildly. Before he could say anything else, Silva pelted into the room and halted, gasping for air.

"Whoa, Silva, what's going on?" Yoh asked.

"You found the bodies, didn't you?" Silva looked at Hao and nodded, still too out of breath to speak.

"The rumours are true then?" He asked once he stopped hyperventilating. "You're Hao again?"

"Yes." Hao answered bluntly.

"Then you killed the X-Laws."

"Only when it was clear that it was either us or them." Hao answered. "Why don't you sit down, have a drink of water for god's sake and we'll explain what happened." Silva gave him a funny look but sat down anyways as Keiko ran to get him a glass of water. Hao sat down across from him, not missing the way Silva tensed up when he did so.

"Lyserg wasn't happy about me being back to being Hao, and also wasn't happy with Yoh continuing to allow me to live with them." Hao explained. "He took Yoh from this hospital and met up with the X-Laws. We went to get him back, simple as that. It was them that decided that it was going to be a fight."

"Yoh?" Silva asked uncertainly, looking for confirmation.

"What he says is true, they did try negotiating first." Yoh replied. "Is anyone going to get in trouble for this?" He asked anxiously.

"Of course not, the Patch are neutral, remember?" Silva said. "I just wanted to confirm my suspicions." He stood up to go.

"I would like to say thank you for taking care of me while I was Kei." Hao said quietly. "It meant, means, a lot to me." Silva looked taken aback and just stood there opening and closing his mouth for a moment.

"You're welcome." He finally managed to stammer and swept out of the room.

"You really are different." Hao turned and looked at Lyserg. The green-haired boy had a hesitant look on his face. "You saved me from Marco, and now all of this... Kei's still there isn't he?"

"Yeah, I'm Kei, and I'm Hao, but I took the name Hao back because that's been my name for so long." Hao sighed. "And that wasn't even my original name."

"You had a name even before Hao?" Yoh asked with interest, attempting to get out of the hospital bed. He pouted when his mother pushed him back in firmly.

"You're not getting out until the doctor okays it." Keiko told him sternly. Yoh growled half-heartedly, but then looked over at Hao expectantly.

"My original name was Asaha." Hao finally revealed, feeling his throat tighten up from the memories of his childhood. "It was the name my mother gave me, and that I kept until the end of my childhood, until I became an Onmyōji."

"Why did you change it?"

"I wanted to make myself anew, forget the pains of my childhood." Hao explained. "The latter I never succeeded in doing, those memories still haunt me."

"Memory can be painful sometimes, but that's what makes us human, isn't it? Being able to feel for the past and not just treat it like a novel, only a story." Yoh told him. Hao blinked rapidly, staring at Yoh for a long moment.

"I really need to stop thinking of you like Hao used to." He chuckled. "And you're right. I forgot how to be human, and look where it got me."

"But that's behind us." Yoh said gently. "Is that right, Lyserg?" Lyserg looked at Yoh and then at Hao. He gulped slightly.

"I don't think I can ever forgive you for what you did, but I can accept that you've changed, and allow you this second chance." He was then pleasantly surprised when Hao bowed low to him in grateful thanks.

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Wolf: EXTRA LARGE PIZZA ALL TO MYSELF! Please review while I go OD on pizza!


	27. Chapter 27

Wolf: I own nothing!

The doctors finally gave Yoh the okay to get out of the hospital and he all but leapt out of the bed and charged outside. "I guess even Yoh has his limits for being lazy." Hao commented to Keiko and Mikihisa as they followed at a slower pace. Mikihisa let out a faint chuckle and then did something that surprised Hao; he ruffled his hair!

Hao gave him his best WTF look, which had actually been perfected by Kei. "You can't let your dad have a little fun with you?" Mikihisa asked playfully. Hao gave him another look, but just shook his head.

"So long as you don't mess up my hair." He replied. This earned him another hair ruffle and an impish chuckle. "What have I gotten myself into?" Hao muttered, rolling his eyes. As they walked into the sunshine they found Yoh chattering amiably with Macchi, while Gregoire and Kanna talked with Luchist. Gregoire had a deep, slow, heavily German-accented voice that could resonate across large distances and Hao could hear that he was discussing football (not American) with Luchist.

All the sudden Yoh looked over briefly, turned away, and then did a double take, his eyes widening in surprise. Hao frowned, was it really so odd that Keiko and Mikihisa were walking with him. He then turned around and did a double take of his own, because Mikihisa had taken off his mask.

His face was lean, with a little bit of stubble on the chin. Hooded black eyes blinked benignly at them, reminding Hao of Yoh. Across one cheek a faded, pinkish scar stretched, barely noticeable. "That's what you've been hiding?" Hao asked in disbelief. "I've seen so much worse!" He added, thinking of the burned little boy in the hospital.

"The mask wasn't to cover up the scar, it was to cover up my shame, but I don't think I need that anymore." Mikihisa replied calmly, though his eyes betrayed a flicker of anxiety.

"No, I don't suppose you do." Hao agreed. "Really, it's not very noticeable, and the only people who are going to comment on it are assholes."

"Thank you for saying so." Mikihisa replied.

"You look a lot like me, tou-san!" Yoh exclaimed happily. Mikihisa smiled at him.

"Vader!" Hao turned, sighing, at the sound of Gregoire's voice. "Can you settle debate?"

"About what?" He asked.

"Luchist say Man U is better than Liverpool, but I disagree. Vhot you say?"

"I'm Japanese, I don't follow football." Gregoire blinked at him.

"Ve need to get you into football zen." He replied slowly. Hao shook his head but smiled. Kanna playfully hit Gregoire in the chest, chastising him in German for bugging Hao while Hao tried to identify the feeling of warmth that suffused through him as he realized that these people actually cared about him as a person and not as some godlike saviour. After a moment he discovered the warm fuzzy feeling was affection, love.

"You alright, Hao?" Yoh asked.

"I'm fine, Yoh." Hao replied. "Better than fine, actually." He slung an arm around Yoh's shoulders. "I haven't felt this good in a long time."

"You know what? Neither have I." Yoh replied, grinning at him.

"So, what's next?" Kanna asked.

"Well, obviously winning the Shaman King tournament will be in the bag now that the X-Laws are gone." Hao said. "But, I think what's next right now is a good lunch."

"Only if you're buying." Kanna teased. He smiled and chuckled, nodding his head. Their little crowd set out for the center of the village, where all the food shops were. They would probably draw some odd looks, but Hao had never cared for others' opinions in the past and neither had Yoh, so the thought didn't bother him.

He pondered the last little while in his mind as he walked, contemplating the lessons he'd learned from being Kei. For so long he'd thought that the only way he would ever be happy is if he attained the power of the Great Spirit and exacted his revenge on the humans for their treatment of him, because really, that was what it had boiled down to.

But, he realized now that he'd been wrong, that power wouldn't make him happy. Indeed, looking back he noticed that the more power he got, the less happy he had become. It wasn't until he'd gained a family, gained friends, that he'd experienced true happiness. It wasn't power that he'd needed, that was missing from his life, but love. It seemed cliché, but there was a reason clichés were that.

He smiled to himself; perhaps he did gain power after all. Love was extremely powerful, an elixir allowing the bearer to stare down the abyss without fear and conquer all enemies. It was true then, what people said, and what he'd learned from his stories; love was the greatest magic of all.

**THE END**

Wolf: This is even sappier than my other ending!


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